(TRENTON) – Zach Heiken, a Salem County vegetable and grain grower, and New Jersey’s 2025 Outstanding Young Farmer, was selected as a national winner at the 2025 Outstanding Young Farmers of America Convention held last week in Des Moines, Iowa.

Zach, with the support of his wife Andrea, owns and operates ZRH Farms in Pedricktown. He was one of four national winners selected from a group of 10 finalists for the 2025 award based on their progress in an agricultural career, extent of soil and water conservation practices and contributions to the well-being of the community, state, and nation.

"It is truly an honor to be recognized nationally among the outstanding candidates we were with last week,” Zach Heiken said., “I want to thank everyone who has supported me and our operation from when I first started learning about farming as youth up to where this journey has taken us today."

The Heikens are the third National Outstanding Young Farmer winner from New Jersey in the last five years. Zach and Andrea were also recognized at the New Jersey Joint State Agricultural Convention Banquet last week in Atlantic City.

“Congratulations to Zach and Andrea for being recognized nationally for the work they have accomplished here in the Garden State,” New Jersey Secretary of Agriculture Ed Wengryn said. “Zach’s passion for agriculture is exemplary. He has built a first-generation operation to become one of the largest producers in the state. Zach’s desire to use innovative, efficient and environmentally friendly practices shows the care he has for the land and the desire to grow his operation in an efficient manner.”

Heiken began farming in 2005 with approximately 100 acres. Today, ZRH Farms consists of well over 4,000 acres of rented and owned land worked by up to 70 employees during the growing season. The predominant crops grown are peppers, cucumbers, asparagus, soybeans, wheat, corn, and eggplant.

Heiken’s interest in farming developed at an early age when his family lived near a vegetable farm, and he would ride his bike to watch the harvest. He eventually started working on that farm where he learned many of the intricacies of the operation. Heiken knew when he graduated from high school he wanted to make agriculture his career.

“By the time I had graduated high school at the age of 18, I had made my decision that I wanted to farm independently,” Heiken said. “I was not a part of a generational farm family, and it was then that I knew I had to create a path of my own. I was very fortunate to have a family that supported my goals, and I was able to save every dollar I earned at a construction job in New York City for a year.”

From that job, he saved enough money to purchase a combine and start a custom harvest business. The next year, he rented 125 acres to grow soybeans. A year later, a farmer with sizeable acreage was retiring, allowing Zach to rent more land and begin his agricultural career in earnest. It was then that he began growing vegetables along with grains.

While Heiken didn’t inherit a farm to realize his dream, he did inherit the qualities needed for success in agriculture.

“I use the term inheritance differently,” Heiken said. “1 was raised by parents who taught me the definition of perseverance and hard work from day one. Without those traits, my farm would never be the success that it has become. By doing custom harvesting, I had the opportunity to meet a lot of peers in the community. I was able to form many friendships and was given advice along the way. By spending time on different farms, while harvesting their crops, I was able to take bits and pieces of what I thought would work in my own operation.”

Heiken uses several conservation practices that have benefitted the production on his farm. These include using drip irrigation with center pivots that now covers approximately 2,500 acres of the land he farms. While he plants no-till crops where possible, he also plants rye strips in the headlands and roadways to protect plants on windy spring days and keep the sand and soil from blowing away.

“A motto I have carried with me throughout my farming experience, was that no limit is best,” Heiken said. “I am open to new ideas in growth and development to my farm, while still holding traditional farming values in my work ethic and crops. Once I meet a goal, another has already formatted in my mind. I live my life never shying away from what may seem impossible to some, because the many challenges I have faced over the years have only brought me to where I am today. The satisfaction that I get out of seeing a crop to completion is second to none.”

Heiken also points out that Andrea does more than her share to help the farm’s success, taking care of many important tasks behind the scenes.

“Andrea completed her bachelor’s degree and fortunately for me, has been able to adapt our family and business as one,” Heiken said. “As the farm has grown, so has the demands in the office which she handles head on. She solely handles the payroll for up to 70 employees seasonally. She also does the billing and accounting, all while raising our three children with grace. I have presented some pretty far-fetched ideas in our 11 years of marriage, and she has yet to reject any of them. Our trust and commitment to the farm and each other has been proven in our successes.”

ZRH Farms donates produce to various organizations, such as Bushels of Blessings, local soup kitchens, and Feeding America. In 2020, when the pandemic arose, Heiken transformed the packing house into an assembly line to put together presorted boxes of vegetables to be donated through Feeding America. This lasted from October 2020 through February 2022 packing as many as 25,000 boxes in some weeks that were distributed throughout the Northeast to various churches, soup kitchens, and charities.

Other National Outstanding Young Farmer winners from New Jersey have been Abbott Lee in 1985, James Giamarese in 1989, Robert Von Thun in 2001, Jeff Vander Groef in 2005, Will Sytsema in 2009, Richard Norz in 2010, John Melick in 2011, Duce Tallamy in 2012, Jess Niederer in 2016, Hillary Barile in 2021, and Byron DuBois in 2024.

The Outstanding Young Farmer (OYF) program is the oldest farmer recognition program in the United States, with the first group of national winners selected in 1955. The goals of the OYF program are to foster better urban-rural relations through the understanding of farmers’ challenges, as well as the appreciation of their contributions and achievements; to bring about a greater interest in farmers/ranchers; and to help build an urban awareness of the farmers’ importance and impact on America’s economy.

The OYF program encourages a greater interest in agriculture and recognizes local citizens’ contributions. The National OYF program is sponsored by Deere & Company, administered by the Outstanding Farmers of America Fraternity, and supported by the National Association of County Agricultural Agents, the National Association of Conservation Districts, and the US Junior Chamber of Commerce.

For more information on the State’s Outstanding Young Farmer program, visit: https://www.nj.gov/agriculture/about/sba/cover.html or contact Assistant Secretary/Marketing and Development Director Joe Atchison at joe.atchison@ag.nj.gov.

###

To learn more about the New Jersey Department of Agriculture, find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/NJDeptofAgriculture and www.facebook.com/JerseyFreshOfficial or Twitter @NJDA and @JerseyFreshNJDA.