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NEXT
MOUNTH
WE SPEAK ABOUT SANMINIATESE ARTICHOKE PRODUCTION
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from the earth to the table
In the two short years since we started our agricultural enterprise
we have learned that the agricultural product distribution system
is characterised by inadequacies and by duplication. The producer
hands over his tomato to the local produce market (or to the deliveryman
to that market, thus adding another layer), which sells to the
wholesaler, who in turns sells it to the retailer! In the case
of tomato puree, there are more layers. The result of course is
a slender income for the producer and a high price for the consumer.
Thus our farm and, more broadly, all the agricultural businesses
of the Colli di San Miniato
decided to organize our own
independent distributionsystem, one that not only keeps to a minimum
transportation costs but allows us as well to ensure the quality
and identity of our products.The system is simplicity itself:
the producers release custody of the product only at the moment
of its processing or its consignment to the consumer. Fresh produce
is protected by transparent wrap with the producer’s identifying
brand name; processed products utilise traditional jars or bottles,
all of them bearing a lot number and the producer’s brand
information. For the most prestigious products, a commission of
experts approves use by the producer of Colli di San Miniato quality
seals.
Assurance of origin and maximum quality,
with no middlemen
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JULY:
The Grinzoso Tomato
the Grinzoso tomato
A centuries-old food on the farmers’ table
The Grinzoso is a luscious Tuscan native with straightforward flavours
and characteristics. Cultivated here in the area for over two centuries,
until 1950 it was the only tomato farmers knew. It is similar in appearance
to the Pisanello, but less productive, and deeply furrowed like the Fiorentino,
but with a sturdier growth habit. It produces four, and sometimes five,
branches, then stops growing. In San Miniato, it has always been trained
on stakes, utilising the reeds that grow locally, but beginning in 2001
we began experimenting in the fields and found that stakes were, in fact,
unnecessary, if we used instead
a sheet of biodegradable mulch. Even though the size of the tomato decreased
slightly, production increased by 30%, labour savings were quite considerable,
as was increased resistance to pests, since no suckerings were necessary.
These novel cultivation practices made the Grinzoso very suitable for
organic farming and the perfect addition to sauces and preserves. In the
current year (2005), I will be planting some 5,000 tomatoes, all Grinzoso,
and all in homage to our venerable local farmers who preserved this heritage
plant and who helped us to preserve a part of our agricultural and food
patrimony. Our heartfelt thanks!
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