How did we get here?

After demand was high at the farmstand at the end of our driveway, we started out in the fall of 2012 making our premium, all-natural ketchup available for purchase at New Jersey area stores. Since then we've added Pure Strained Tomatoes, Crushed Tomatoes in a BPA-free can, Pasta Sauces, Jams, Tomato Juices, and seasonal favorites Cranberry Sauce and heirloom Pumpkin Puree. In addition to buying our tomatoes from our state's exceptional growers, we use the same high standards of transparency and safety for all of our ingredients. Spices are fair trade and organic when possible, the molasses and cane sugar fair trade and organic, the apple cider vinegar from a family-run company, and our garlic is always sourced from California.  Unlike many other brands, we use only trusted and fully traceable sources for our tomatoes and don't use shortcuts like tomato paste or concentrates -- only non-GMO ingredients, and our products often contain half as much sugar and salt as other brands if added at all.

Our seed trial

This Eastern climate makes growing field-grown food organically a real challenge, and every year we learn more about what the best techniques are for us and our growers. We’ve even received two USDA grants to help us research new methods of growing tomatoes organically and adding value to our state’s most famous fruit. 

The most impactful way we have found to truly lower inputs and protect soil health is with better seeds. Our ongoing seed trial, in collaboration with an exceptional plant scientist, is yielding open-pollinated, non-GMO seeds that can withstand the heat waves, floods, hurricanes, and tornadoes that have hit our area, in higher frequency than ever before. And yet, the tomatoes are still there, with exceptional flavor, color, and yield.

Not only do our tomatoes perform in both home and professional kitchens, but they also perform for our growers, even in the most uncertain of weather events. Which means lower inputs all around. And, open-pollinated seeds mean they can save their seeds, lessening dependence on large seed companies who they often buy from year after year.

And why ‘First Field’?

The name of our company didn’t come from a contest, focus group, or marketing firm. The plot of land where First Field began had three fields. Farmers being logical, literal types, the fields were named 1, 2 and 3. Field #1 – the first field – was dedicated to growing the tomatoes we used to develop our first batches of ketchup.

We find joy from the stories we hear from our customers on how our products connect them to memories of their first field, or backyard garden, or small pot of herbs. Though our family farmers’ fields may be a little bigger, all of them take the same good care of their land and crops, and we’re proud to be be working with them.