Chester Agricultural Center

08/06/2025

07/11/2025

A few weeks back, we had the opportunity to welcome Chester’s Academy Ecology class on a visit to Rise & Root Farm as part of a student-driven community-centered initiative to connect young people and the public to local farms. We are elated to highlight student and teacher leadership in building local community connections at a time when the current administration is slashing federal funding for public schools, particularly funds that would be allocated to professional development for teachers and enrichment opportunities for students. To that we say, SHAME!


Rise & Root Farm’s hosts, Michaela and Karen, took the kids on a farm tour making a pit stop at the compost pile, where students had the opportunity to dig their hands in the freshly made natural fertilizer. Some took a whiff, others inspected for tiny life. “We can’t keep taking (from the earth)”, shared Karen, “We’ve done a lot of damage. We need to give back.”

Featured pics show students making stops on the farm tour at the tomato tunnel, the compost pile, tasting fresh salad mix, and helping compost mulch farm beds.

07/11/2025

If you aren't following the work of Rise & Root Farm yet, you're missing out on the opportunity to learn from experienced farmers and educators who aren't just passionate about ag education but who are also invested in building people up and creating safe spaces for folks to show up authentically. Check out this new series of workshops by the Rise & Root Farmily!

06/13/2025

Vamo' ahi con fuerza! Les compartimos esta nota hermosa sobre Huerta Farm! Marcela Huerta y su hermana Leonor querían empezar su propia granja para trabajar junto a su familia y no ser víctima, ni hacer víctimas a otros, de maltratos en el ámbito laboral. Pueden encontrar el producto de Huerta Farm en Newburgh, Middletown, ahora en el condado de Putnam también, y en varias sedes de mercados agrícolas en la ciudad de Nueva York!

We're resharing this beautiful feature of Huerta Farm! Marcela Huerta and her sister Leonor started Huerta Farm because they wanted to sustain themselves and their families, and not fall victim, or make victims of others, to the infamous labor exploitation practices that are so common in the agricultural space. You can find Huerta Farm's produce in Newburgh, Middletown, now in Putnam County, and also in a number of NYC farmers markets!

✨Saturday Spotlight✨ | Huerta Farms 📍 Chester, NY

🌱 Founded in 2019, Marcela and Leonor Huerta established Huerta Farms to bring together their family and help feed the community. With a passion for defending farm workers' rights, their farm promises that all workers will not be treated badly. 👐

Huerta farms is one of the local farms that provides produce to the mobile Farm Truck to bring fresh, locally grown food directly to our community! 🌽

Learn more about Huerta Farms here! https://www.chesteragcenter.org/huerta-farms/ or follow them on instagram 🧑‍🌾

Meet up with The Farm Truck in your neighborhood! ⛟ To find the schedule 📆 follow this link! https://cceputnamcounty.org/food-nutrition/the-food-truck

Supported by the intramural research program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets New York Food for New York Families Grant Nu. AGM01-C01006GG-3000000 🌾

06/06/2025

On part II of our collaboration with the NYC Mayor's Office of Urban Agriculture and the NYC Department of Education’s Office of Food and Nutrition Services (OFNS), we welcomed another group of students from the High School for Environmental Studies on a visit to the CAC on May 23rd. This visit was possible through federal and state Farm-to-School grant programs funds, allocated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and NYS Department of Agriculture and Markets (NYSDAM) to reimagine agricultural education programming, increasing local food procurement of socially disadvantaged farmers and producers, and establishing learning gardens at public school sites across the city.

“Some of my students thought we had to travel far to be on the land and connect with farmers, not knowing that we would be able to witness farming at the Chester Agricultural Center just within an hour’s travel time from NYC”, shared Ms. Ahmadi, the students’ Food Studies Class Teacher. She added, “to be aware of how the produce farmed here is feeding so many of us here and in the city is so important so students can make those big picture connections.”

Farm to school funding is currently in danger due to the termination of several USDA programs and potential cuts to other school meal programs. The cancellation of these programs is estimated to impact over 12 million students, particularly those who may not have access to fresh foods outside of school. Speak out against farm to school funding cancellations! Contact legislators, sign online petitions, share personal stories about the impact of funding cuts, and encourage others to speak up.

05/29/2025

05/27/2025

"Across the Hudson Valley, farmers and farmworkers are being priced out of their land and homes. “Many people who have stable housing don't understand the issues of rural housing and land insecurity,” Nickell says. “They think it means living in dilapidated, run-down, ramshackle housing. It certainly can mean this, but insecurity can also be caused by unstable wages, unpredictable rent hikes, and landlord harassment.”

With small farmers priced out across the Hudson Valley, advocates are creating new models to keep land in the hands of growers and communities.

05/22/2025

Catch the Rise & Root Farm crew every Wednesday until the end of June at the Union Square Greenmarket!

04/19/2025

Comgrats to Christina! ❤️🔥 What a beautiful recognition! One of the amazing things about the Chester Ag Center is that it gets to host incredible farm businesses, Choy Division being just one of them!

04/13/2025

The Agriculture Department is reviewing 15 of its programs amid ongoing Trump Administration scrutiny over spending, according to a list provided to Agri-Pulse on Thursday by Senate Ag Committee ranking member Amy Klobuchar's office.

04/13/2025