Three Italian farm families on how selling direct to the consumer helps them get a better price
Towards the end of the 19th century, almost one million acres of Veneto coastline was earmarked for reclamation from the sea.
a Fagiana, meaning ‘the pheasant’, is one such estate formed following this national policy, and has been farmed since 1929.
An hour’s drive from the region’s capital, Venice, the 1,100ac farm lies one metre below sea level, with large embankments protecting it from the sea.
The farm is run by agronomist Michele Conte along with his father Eugenio. The estate is owned by Alberto Bastianello, and the Conte family has been working the land for over 40 years.
The land is particularly suited to the cultivation of high-quality rice, which first took place here during the 1960s.
“Having originally been swamp land, we are fortunate to enjoy good organic matter content and potassium levels in the soils across the farm,” says Michele. “Potassium is vital for rice production.
“During the early ’90s, neighbouring farms started to move away from rice production to mainstream crops such as corn and beets, with greater mechanisation now available.
“My father and the owners understood the quality of rice production in this region and decided we needed to maintain the tradition.”
Today, the farm grows almost 400ac of carnaroli risotto rice per year, valued at €1.3m. Corn, soybeans and sugar beets are also grown. The farm has a 25ac vineyard and one megawatt of solar PVs covering 4ac of land.
Italy is the leading producer of rice in Europe, growing around 1.5m tonnes every year.
Close
Michele Conte displaying a bag of La Fagiana carnaroli rice.
“The composition of starch in our risotto is perfect, it gives you a really creamy dish,” Michele says.
“During the Christmas period we sell 3t of rice per day in our farm shop. Of the 1,000t of rice harvested each year, half is sold within the farm’s gates.
“Our direct contact with the customer is the most important aspect to our business. We prioritise low food miles and maintaining close contact with the consumer.”
Focus on the environmental impact of the farm is high on the agenda for 26-year-old Michele.
La Fagiana is conducting trials using low levels of water application to 40ac of rice fields using a drip irrigation system designed by Israeli company Netafilm.
The water for irrigation and the paddy fields comes from the nearby Livenza river. The micro-irrigation system uses just 35pc of the water compared to flooded paddy fields.
“This is a completely new technique for us as we are growing the rice in an aerobic state instead of anaerobic in the flooded fields,” Michele explains.
“Part of the nitrogen application is wasted in the flooded condition, so there’s many reasons why we’re interested in this new method.
“The farm has 15 years’ worth of yield maps data, and satellite observation of the fields is conducted also.
“Every day is an experiment in farming. We are always trying something different, to achieve better production results and in turn do better for our environment.”
Harvesting €10,000 of asparagus a day
Borsetto Azienda Agricola is a 75ac tillage and vegetable farm 30 minutes east of Treviso.
Fifth-generation farmer Marco Borsetto works the land alongside his father Antonio, mother Laura and brother Guido.
The farm is renowned for its asparagus production, growing over 13ac of the veg this year, alongside corn and soya bean.
Asparagus was first grown on the farm over 20 years ago, but production has dramatically increased in recent years.
Up until 2019, the farm had almost 40ac of fruit trees. In August that year, a severe storm hit the farm and all of the trees were lost.
“It was a terrifying experience ,” Marco says.
The “devastation” convinced the Borsettos to change their system.
“We had been experiencing a lot of strange weather events in recent years, particularly with frost in late May. Our fruit trees were very vulnerable to these abnormal events,” Marco continues.
“We decided to turn our focus to asparagus for its harsh weather resistance, which has made our farm more resilient. We have seen many benefits in making this change.
“We are now able to focus more heavily on the quality of our crop varieties and the product we sell.
“Most importantly, we can now demand the right price for our produce which our farm needs to operate profitably.”
In the past the Borsettos were required to wait until the last of their fruit was sold before the distributor paid them for their full harvest. This wait period was typically up to seven months.
“We used to only get a 10pc payment up front for the year’s fruit production,” says Marco. “Not until the last apple was sold by the distributor would we be paid in full.
“This means it’s almost impossible to get into fruit production without the money to support yourself through the intervening period.”
The Borsettos now sell their asparagus directly to the consumer, also supplying companies such as London-based Natoora.
In future, the Borsettos hope to fully convert the farm to asparagus production and sell their product for six months per year using their innovative underground heating system.
Asparagus is planted in the region in late May and it is left to vegetate for the first year.
During the second season the first appearance of asparagus takes place.
Half of March during the second year is spent harvesting. During the third year the asparagus is in full production.
With plastic on the surface and underground heating in action during the third year, the Borsettos are able to harvest 1,500kg of asparagus per day during peak season.
The average price they receive for their asparagus is €6.50/kg.
Close
Fields with irrigation and underground heating installed at Borsetto farm
‘We could easily just sell our grapes to a large processor’
Close
The cousins in their vineyard
Gli Allori, or ‘The Laurels’, is a 52ac vineyard in the Prosecco hills of Conegliano, operated by cousins Matilde Pollio, Giulio Sturaro and Giacomo Zaninotto.
Conegliano is a small town between the Dolomites and Venice and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2019.
Gli Allori was founded in 1919 by the cousins’ great-grandparents.
The family grew with the birth of three daughters who went on to dedicate their lives to the wine business before passing the vineyard on to the three cousins in 2007.
The label of their top prosecco DOCG ‘Le Tose’ meaning ‘The Ladies’ is dedicated to them.
DOCG means designation of controlled origin and guaranteed. It is the most stringent form of prosecco production and is considered to be superior.
“We produce a niche product that is all about quality. We want to give respect to the rich history of wine production within our family and the surrounding area too,” the cousins say.
“We decided to create our own brand of prosecco to honour these values. We could easily just sell our grapes to a large processor and make more money, but by doing that we lose connection with the consumer and the rich heritage of our vines.”
The Glera grapes are harvested in August and September. On average it takes 1kg of grapes to produce one 750ml bottle of prosecco. Between 20,000 and 25,000 bottles are produced each year by the vineyard, each bottle retailing for €7-11 depending on the sugar content.
The Glera vines take 4-5 years to become fully productive, with their yield tending to decrease gradually once they reach 20.
During peak season the cousins employ 20-25 people to help with the harvesting. Pruning in the vineyard takes place from the beginning of January until March.
The vineyard has been recently certified as a sustainable producer by the Italian Ministry for Agriculture and Forestry.
“We are passionate about maintaining a rich family tradition in the business and the highest quality possible for our consumers,” the cousins say.
