From Swiss chard and collard greens to peppers, tomatoes, corn and much more, local produce – both conventionally and organically farmed – is becoming a mainstay on kitchen tables across New Jersey and New York. To meet that demand and expand its partnerships with the local farming community, Inserra Supermarkets is bringing locally-sourced produce to all of its 22 ShopRite stores (Emerson, Fair Lawn, Hackensack, Hillsdale, Lodi, Lyndhurst, New Milford, Northvale, Palisades Park, Ramsey, Tallman, Wayne, and West Nyack) this spring and summer. (Visit Website)

“Consumers can taste the robust flavors and freshness of produce that was picked that same day or the day before,” said Eric Beelitz, director of produce of Inserra Supermarkets. “That taste is important, and of course, really makes a difference.”

In New Jersey, the family-owned chain’s 17 ShopRites are located in Bergen, Hudson and Passaic Counties. In New York, the company has 5 stores in Rockland County. Under Beelitz’s direction with that of the Inserra leadership team, the company has turned produce into one of its signature departments.

Inserra Supermarkets has a long-standing partnership with Abma’s Farm in Wyckoff, Bergen County’s only produce and poultry farm, which has been in the Abma family for generations. In regard to organic produce and herbs, Inserra Supermarkets primarily sources those items from Zone 7, a distributor that works with 120+, regional sustainable farms – primarily those in New Jersey and Pennsylvania – 52 weeks a year.

The company also partners with Guarino Sons Produce, Inc., a family-owned and operated wholesale produce distributor, and regularly sources produce from Winslow Junction Farm, Scordo Farm, Cassaday Farms, Circle M Farms and Pastore Orchards. Many of these farms and distributorships have been in families for generations just like Inserra Supermarkets.

For years, Inserra Supermarkets has sold Abma’s produce in some of its ShopRite locations. This summer, the family-owned chain will increase those offerings, particularly Abma’s sweet corn.

“Abma’s Farm will pick the corn at 4 a.m. and deliver it to our stores the same morning,” said Beelitz. “We did this last year with Abma’s, and our customers couldn’t get enough of it.”