homegrown in tuscany

Prepared for Randall Stratton and John O’Keefe of The Spannocchia Foundation, Tuscany, Italy

Héloïse Chandless, Kate Cholakis, Erin HepfnerConway School of Landscape Design

March 2011

Homegrown In Tuscany

A Food System Study for the Val di Merse, Tuscany

The Conway School of Landscape Design is the only institution of its kind in North America. Its focus is sustainable landscape planning and design. Each year, through its accredited, ten-month graduate program just eighteen to nineteen students from diverse backgrounds are immersed in a range of applied landscape studies, ranging in scale from residences to regions. Graduates go on to play signifi cant professional roles in various aspects of landscape planning and design. www.csld.edu

Are rural regions capable of feeding their populations?

How can farming gain support from the community?

How can people work together to revive cultural traditions through the production and exchange of locally grown food?

Around the world farmers, communities, and governments are asking themselves these questions. Spannocchia, an organic farm and medieval estate in Tuscany, has begun to connect these groups, fostering a global dialogue about local, sustainable agriculture.

Spannocchia is searching for ways that it can connect to its local community through integration with the regional food system. This food system study explores the possibility of the Val di Merse region generating a local food economy, and how Spannocchia can play a powerful role in this large-scale effort.

Image Source: Spannocchia

Cover Image Source: Spannocchia, Photographer: Paul Avis

1food system study for the val di merse, tuscany

homegrown in tuscanya food system study for the val di merse, tuscany

Prepared for Randall Stratton and John O’Keefe of the Spannocchia FoundationTuscany, Italy

héloïse chandless, Kate cholakis, erin hepfnerconway school of landscape designmarch 2011

2 food system study for the val di merse, tuscany

acknowledgementsWe would like to thank Randall Stratton and John O’Keefe of the Spannocchia Foundation, the core clients for this project, and Erin Cinelli, Executive Director of the Spannocchia Foundation, who donated their time to providing information, making contacts, and reviewing the progress of this project on a regular basis. We are also grateful for the conversations shared with the many interns and employees of Spannocchia, including Katie Phelan.

Many thanks to the three visionary leaders of the Mercatale farmers market in Tuscany, Mariateresa Battaglino, Daniela Casarin, and Andrea Battino, who inspired our study of the current food system. Thanks also to Berenice Galli for providing data about farming in the study area, and to Marco Bechi for sharing his thoughts about Slow Food Siena.

© 2011 by the Conway School of Landscape Design

332 South Deerfield Road, Conway, MA 01341, USA

www.csld.edu All rights reserved.


Executive Summary

Introduction: Local Agriculture in Tuscany and New EnglandClients and GoalsProject ProcessStudy AreaProject Framework

Food System Components: OverviewPeopleHistorical ResourcesCurrent ResourcesActivities

Case Studies: OverviewComprehensive Organization: CISA, MassachusettsComprehensive Organization: NOFA, VermontCollaborative Project: Farm to Plate Strategic Plan, VermontCollaborative Project: Understanding Vermont’s Local Food Landscape, VermontIndividual Participant: Shelburne Farms, VermontIndividual Participant: Bioagriturismo La Porta dei Parchi, Abruzzo, Italy

Recommendations: OverviewRecommendation 1: Obtain Relevant DataRecommendation 2: Increase Collaboration

ConclusionAppendixReferences

contents

Image Source: Spannocchia Image Source: Spannocchia Image Source: Spannocchia

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i food system study for the val di merse, tuscany

executive summaryCarbon-fuelled industrialization is threatening the availability of healthy, local food around the world. The rising cost of oil increases the vulnerability of people who rely on distant food sources. In Tuscany, Italy, a closed loop form of agriculture was practiced for more than eight centuries prior to the modernization of the twentieth century, when farmers left the countryside for the city. Those who remained in or moved to rural areas are currently searching for ways to revive a rich tradition of farming and to supply the people of the region with a reliable source of food.

In the Val di Merse region of Tuscany, community leaders are beginning to revive local agriculture. Spannocchia, an organization in Val di Merse dedicated to promoting sustainable agriculture, cultural history, and land stewardship, has expanded this dialogue to the northeastern United States with the intention of creating an exchange of information about how people can increase access to local food.

This study contributes to this dialogue through an analysis of the current food system in the Val di Merse region. Land cover analyses revealed that although much of this rural landscape was abandoned in the later half of the twentieth century, farmland and woodlands still dominate

the landscape. These lands might return to the intensely productive state that they were farmed under for thousands of years. However, in order for local agriculture to again become a reality in the Val di Merse region, the participants of the food system must work together to identify the obstacles to local agriculture and opportunities for bridging the gaps within the system. Drawing on case studies from New England and Italy, the study demonstrates how difficulties experienced in the Val di Merse have been overcome elsewhere. Organizations in both New England and Italy utilize marketing strategies, educational programming, fund-raising campaigns, and resources across scales (from local to governmental) to bring people closer to the source of the their food.

Recommendations are made for how Spannocchia and other members of the Val di Merse region can utilize these strategies and work together to build a healthier, more sustainable food system. The future of an agriculturally and socially based organization lies in its connection with the community. Improving the relationship between Spannocchia and the region will improve the resilience of both.

Is the Val di Merse region capable of feeding its population?


How can the sustainable farming industry be recognized as an important, viable profession?



introduction



local agriculture in tuscany and new england

whaT dOeS lOcal agRIculTuRe mean FOR a RuRal RegIOn In TuScany?

This story begins at Spannocchia, an eleven-hundred-acre medieval estate and organic farm in the Province of Siena. Spannocchia, once a feudal estate, dates back to the early 1200s. The property was managed under the Mezzadria (sharecropping) system until 1982, when that system was no longer legal and the tenant farmers left the area for industrial jobs in cities. Since 1992, the property owners’ mission has been to educate people from around the world about conservation, preservation, and organic agriculture. Ways in which Spannocchia supports its mission include the following:

Natural Resource Conservation: Part of the property belongs to a wildlife refuge (the Tuscan Riserva Naturale Alto Merse), and sections of the forest are sustainably managed.

Preservation: This historical site includes a medieval tower, villa, stone bridge (Ponte della Pia), and ruins of an Augustinian monastery. Employees and interns practice historical agricultural methods. For example, coppiced trees are removed from the forest using horses rather than oil-powered machinery. Preservation of buildings and traditional land stewardship educates visitors about culture and sustainable farming.

Organic Agriculture: The farm produces grains, vegetables, olive oil, wine, honey, eggs, and meat from its heritage breed of Cinta Senese pigs. These products are consumed by Spannocchia’s employees, interns, bed-and-breakfast visitors, and educational program participants. Products are also sold in local stores and farmers markets.

Spannocchia serves as a living example of “a nearly complete, self-sustaining, cyclical system of agriculture, whereby crops feed the animals, the animals produce the manure that is used to fertilize the fields to grow the next cycle of crops, the animals and crops feed the human residents and visitors, and the humans provide the labor necessary to make it all work” (Spannocchia Foundation, “Sustainable Agriculture”). It is a model for local agriculture, where farming and the community are inextricably linked.

Image Source: SpannocchiaInterns shelling peas from the organic vegetable garden to be used for a community dinner.

Protected woodlands, organic gardens and olive groves, and historical buildings surround the Spannocchia Castello.


SPannOcchIa and new england

The Spannocchia Foundation is a nonprofit intending to “encourage global dialogue about sustainable agricultural practices and the preservation of rural landscapes and traditions for future generations through the example of the Tenuta di Spannocchia” (Spannocchia Foundation, “Symposium”). Through two recent, cross-cultural symposia, the foundation shared the Spannocchia model on a global scale. These symposia connected individuals interested in the intersection of food, landscape, and economy. In February 2009, farmers, writers, chefs, scholars, agriculture-based organization representatives, and young activists from New England traveled to Tuscany. This group of professionals attended lectures, farm tours, and local-food themed meals. Emphasis was placed on discussions about the challenges and opportunities faced by Tuscan professionals surrounding the promotion of sustainable food production and distribution in Italy. In October 2010, their Italian counterparts traveled to New England to continue and deepen the conversation. Issues discussed included sustainable agriculture, marketing of local products, state and regional policy-making, funding for food-related projects, and community outreach.

Both the New England and Italian participants shared similar goals of connecting people to farming, and were interested in how these goals were addressed in the two regions. As explained by Brian Donahue, a member of Spannocchia’s Board of Trustees, Tuscany has a strong food culture and productive landscape. However, this culture and tradition of farming is in decline. New England’s landscape and food culture have already been degraded, but New England does have a strong movement dedicated to generating and reviving the food culture and farming traditions that have largely disappeared from the physical landscape and community.

SPannOcchIa and cOnway, maSSachuSeTTS

Local agriculture is currently being promoted in New England and Tuscany. However, both regions encounter similar obstacles. Spannocchia, dedicated to connecting agriculture with community, recognized that these distant communities can learn from one another. This winter, Spannocchia turned to the Conway School of Landscape Design in Massachusetts to gain another perspective on local food production and continue an international dialogue.

“The New Englanders have a vibrant movement that needs to be shaped, and the Tuscans have an ancient shape that needs life and movement.” - Spannocchia Foundation


The Castello di Spannocchia overlooks sustainably managed forests and a small vineyard that provides wine for the estate.

The Conway School overlooks secondary growth forests that were once in agricultural production.


clIenTS

Randall Stratton, General Manager of the Spannocchia estate, is interested in how Spannocchia can take on a larger role in its regional community through local agriculture. As shown by the recent symposia, Spannocchia is making a strong effort to provoke and engage in global conversations about local and sustainable agriculture. There is an opportunity for Spannocchia to expand the conversation with its local community. The Spannocchia Foundation is currently discussing a future for the estate that might involve combining the farm and educational component into a nonprofit entity. This may involve an Italian cooperative or long-term lease, where the productive farm business would be a subsidiary of the nonprofit. This transition could provide Spannocchia with an opportunity to collaborate and integrate with its local community.

The Conway School’s project hopes to sharpen the conversation about Spannocchia’s future by analyzing its current and potentially greater role in the regional food system. This implies a need to evaluate the current food system in order to move forward. In addition to Randall Stratton, John O’Keefe, board member of the Spannocchia Foundation, has served as a U.S.-based client.

PROJecT gOalS

The goal of the project is to explore possible ways in which Spannocchia can connect to its local community economically, agriculturally, and socially through integration within the local food system. The Spannocchia estate is a model of sustainable agriculture and land stewardship within a historically and culturally rich landscape. By studying the existing food system in the greater region, and researching relevant case studies, the study explores how Spannocchia can apply its model within the region.

clients and Goals

“The mission of the Spannocchia Foundation is to encourage global dialogue about sustaining cultural landscapes for future generations. We are committed to: promoting sustainable organic agriculture and forestry practices, supporting research and education on the ecological and cultural history of the Tuscan region of Italy, providing a venue for artists whose work and presence complement the Foundation’s mission, and becoming a valued, recognized member of the local community in Tuscany.”

- Spannocchia Foundation, “Tenuta di Spannocchia”


Image Source: SpannocchiaSpannocchia employees and interns sell products grown and processed on site.


TuScany

The project was conducted over a ten-week period; the team spent two weeks at Tenuta di Spannocchia in the Val di Merse, Tuscany, to conduct research and interviews in the field. Subsequently, the team worked from the U.S. while assembling the data gathered in Italy and researching case studies from New England.

Randall Stratton, Spannocchia’s General Manager, served as the team’s primary resource. Spannocchia’s staff were also a helpful resource, providing background information about the local food economy, local farming, and local traditions. Interviews were conducted with Katie Phelan, education coordinator at Spannocchia and graduate of the Slow Food University in Parma, Emilia-Romagna, and Marco Bechi, Event Coordinator of Slow Food Siena, an organization founded in Siena in 1989 to protect food traditions while countering fast food. Daniela Casarin, Castello Director at Spannocchia, provided essential information about the Val di Merse region, and coordinated interviews with Maria Teresa Battaglino, Andrea Battino, and Berenice Galli. These individuals are currently undertaking projects that promote local food in the region, and will be discussed in greater detail in the section related to food system components. Dr. Paulo Bucelli and his team at the office of the Province of Siena provided information and GIS data about land cover in the region.

Access to details about Spannocchia, its history, historical and modern farming practices, and land use change, has contributed significantly to this project. A lack of available data, however, curtailed the team’s ability to provide detailed contextual information at a regional level.

new england

The design team returned to New England mid-January to continue the project at the Conway School. Interviews with New England organizations that share similar goals and obstacles with the clients and stakeholders helped identify strategies applicable in the study area.

Project Process

Image Source: Erin Hepfner

Image Source: Erin Hepfner

Sustainably managed forests and coppiced

chestnuts at Spannocchia have been sources of energy resources for

centuries.

Newly planted olive trees used for on-site production of olive oil for residents and visitors of the property.

Left to right: Kate Cholakis, Erin Hepfner, and Héloïse Chandless at the Castiglione Che Dio Sol Sa (“The Castle that Only God Knows”), in a nature reserve adjacent to the Spannocchia property.


In consultation with the clients and stakeholders, the study area was defined according to the region that producers at local farmers market, the Mercatale, come from. The goal of the Mercatale is to provide people of the Val di Merse with a variety of high-quality, locally produced foods that support a well-rounded diet. However, to provide the Val di Merse with this service, the Mercatale’s area increased to include additional communes.

The map of the Province of Siena shows Spannocchia at the center of this geographic area. Spannocchia has the opportunity to take on a larger, and possibly central role in the local food system.

italy

Province of siena

tuscany

Italy is divided into regions, one of which is Tuscany.

Tuscany comprises several provinces, including the Province of Siena.

The province is divided into smaller regions of individual communes.

The study area consists of eight communes that belong to three culturally designated areas: the Val di Merse, the location of the Mercatale; Val d’ Elsa; and the City of Siena. These areas represent the geographic reach of the Mercatale.

study area

tuscany

Province of siena

val di merse

val d’elsasiena

chianti

le crete

amiata

val d’orcia

valdichiana

study area

Study Area: 1000 km2

spannocchia


This study examines the local food system, draws lessons from case studies in New England and Italy, and recommends steps that Spannocchia can take to increase collaboration within its region.

FOOd SySTem cOmPOnenTS

In order to identify the role Spannocchia can play in its local food system, the components of that system need to be evaluated.

The study begins to examine the following:

• Identifying the stakeholders, people in the study area who are involved in the current food system, helps to discover opportunities for improving communication and sharing resources.

• Studying historical and current resources determines what the land is capable of supporting.

• Examining activities helps to understand how people are utilizing resources. Activities include how food products are currently produced, processed, transported, marketed, and consumed.

By evaluating these components, the obstacles to local agriculture are identified.

caSe STudIeS

Case studies from New England and Italy illustrate how organizations respond to problems in their local agricultural system and suggest broadly the applicability of these strategies to the study area.

The strategies demonstrate how regions and organizations have promoted local agriculture in the face of obstacles similar to those in Tuscany.

RecOmmendaTIOnS

Building on the food system components and the strategies of the case studies, recommendations are made to help the clients realize their goals. This will help Spannocchia take on new roles to contribute to a more resilient food system.

Project framework

definition of a Food System:“a food system encompasses all of the resources (e.g. land, soil, crops), activities (e.g. growing, harvesting, researching, processing, packaging, transporting, marketing, consuming, and disposing of food), and people (e.g. farmers, bakers, policy-makers) involved in providing nourishment to people and many kinds of animals.”(vermont sustainable Jobs fund, Farm to Plate)

food system components

case studies

recommendations

food system study


overview


People activitiesresources

All photographs from Spannocchia

The components of a food system include the people involved, the natural resources that the system draws upon and the activities that take place as people use resources. The geographic region in which food systems occur are known as “food sheds.” Although knowing the people, resources, and activities of the food shed helps identify areas for improvement on that scale, understanding components that lie beyond the physical boundaries of the food shed is critical to being aware of possible influences on the system.

The Mercatale, a local farmers market, demonstrates how considering a larger context is necessary in order to fill gaps in the current food system. The Mercatale was founded to provide residents of the Val di Merse with a variety of high-quality, locally produced foods that support a well-rounded diet, such as vegetables, fruits, grains, olive oil, wine and animal products. However, the organizers of the market had to look beyond the Val di Merse boundary to find producers that could supply the market with products not available in the region. This increased the food shed of the Val di Merse, and required the organizers of the market to look at people and activities that extend beyond the geographic boundaries of the region.

This food system study focuses on this larger Val di Merse region in order to consider possible influences on the system. Identifying people in the government who are able to change laws on behalf of farmers is a connection beyond the food shed that benefits a local region. For example, government officials can alter strict regulations imposed on farmers that local authorities have little control over Similarly, natural resources do not stop at political or cultural boundaries, and it is important to understand how the greater natural context may affect a smaller area. Larger land patterns may influence how water reaches and functions in the region; knowing how water is treated upstream will indicate if there are pollutants in the water source that can affect crops. Activities that occur outside of the region also have important implications: for example, a slaughterhouse located in a nearby commune may allow locally raised meat to be available for consumption in the region.

Components should also be evaluated over time. In this section, the historical resources of the Val di Merse region suggest how a history of agricultural tradition and land use may be revived.


People: stakeholders

Identifying the people involved in a food system reveals opportunities for building connections and increasing communication between people with a shared goal of promoting agriculture. These people might also be referred to as stakeholders, because they have vested interests in the food system.

The clients of the project, who represent Spannocchia, are stakeholders of their local food system. Spannocchia is connected to another group of stakeholders that are promoting local agriculture in the study area. The following pages use this group of stakeholders to demonstrate how the goals, efforts, and obstacles faced by people involved a food system should be identified.

STaKehOldeRS

The design team met with the following stakeholders. These individuals are working with Spannocchia and other organizations to improve the connectivity and productivity of the current food system:

• Mariateresa Battaglino is a community organizer and founder of Erbandando, a group of local women who harvest and cook with native herbs using traditional recipes.

• Andrea Battino is the founder of “Comune di Bagnaia,” an agriculture commune that grows and supplies food for its own residents and works to restore a local food economy in the region. He also works for the Province of Siena at the “Sportello Biologico,” an office that provides information about organic agriculture.

• Daniela Casarin is the former president of Erbandando, Castello Director at Spannocchia, and proponent of tradition and community building.

• Berenice Galli is a local farmer and author of “Coordination et gestion de l’action et de la méthodologie participative du ‘Projet Rururbal,’” a document supporting local agriculture in the study area.

Above: Left to Right: Erin Hepfner, Daniela Casarin, and Kate Cholakis

Below: Mariateresa Battaglino (left), and Héloïse Chandless (right)


STaKehOldeR gOalS

These stakeholders share three broad goals with Spannocchia: promoting sustainable agriculture, developing community, and supporting a local food economy. People and organizations with compatible goals open the door for an exchange of information.

STaKehOldeR eFFORTS

The stakeholders are currently identifying further possibilities for collaboration among each other and within the community.

The major initiative of these stakeholders is the Mercatale, a farmers market where a select group of local producers sell high-quality goods. Spannocchia is connected to the Mercatale not only because of Daniela, who works at Spannocchia and helped form the market, but also because Spannocchia is a producer at the market. Being a part of this helps Spannocchia relate to its local context both economically and socially through partnerships with community members in support of local agriculture. The Mercatale facilitates an exchange of local food products, knowledge, and agricultural and social traditions. The stakeholders are also currently trying to acquire a premises to be known as “Lo Spazio” (The Space) that will allow them to carry out several outreach projects within the community. Using food as the unifying theme, the Mercatale and Lo Spazio seek to educate the community about local farm products while providing financial and structural support to farmers.

Spannocchia employees sell goods to local consumers at the Mercatale

Locally produced Pecorino cheese wheels

People: stakeholder Goals and efforts


IdenTIFyIng ObSTacleS

The stakeholders recognize that there is a gap between struggling farmers and an untapped local consumer market. Conversations with these stakeholders revealed potential obstacles to the goals that they share with Spannocchia. The obstacles contribute to disconnections in the current food system, and the gap between Spannocchia and its local context.

1)SustainableAgricultureandtheDifficultyofFarming

Goal: The clients and stakeholders seek to promote sustainable farming and the cultivation of high quality food products in the region.

Obstacles:

• Andrea Battino expressed the difficult reality of farming in the region: economic and social factors decrease farming’s viability and attractiveness to young newcomers.

• In addition, sustainable farming is labor intensive, and due to a recent exodus of farmers from the countryside, it is difficult to find adequate labor.

• Although farmland prices are modest, according to Randall Stratton of Spannocchia, it is extremely difficult to change land uses due to legal restrictions. Although this means that agricultural land and forest are generally protected, it also implies that farmers cannot easily change agricultural practices on their land.

• Berenice Galli adds that excessive bureaucracy makes it difficult for farmers to make a living. This is particularly true for the value-added processing of food.

2)LocalCommunity,SocialFragmentationandTourism

Goal: The clients and stakeholders seek to bring together farmers and communities using food as a uniting force, while preserving culture and tradition.

Obstacles:

• The local community is fragmented due to recent, widespread changes in demographics and land use. Population migration from the countryside to urban areas at the end of the twentieth century, combined with the fall of the Mezzadria (a sharecropping system) led to a complete restructuring of society.

• Although tourists expand market potential, the influx of ten million visitors arriving annually in Tuscany may also complicate the development of a local community (Cai, “Climate and Tourism in Tuscany”).

3)LocalFoodEconomyandGlobalMarketInterests

Goal: The clients and stakeholders seek to generate a local food economy (feeding the local population while ensuring economic and community resilience).

Obstacles:

• All of the stakeholders mentioned that farmers are disconnected from the local market. Farmers may be producing commodity crops, such as wine and olive oil, that may not satisfy the needs of the local market.

• Berenice Galli adds that consumers do not understand why locally produced, high-quality foods cost more than those found in a supermarket. Information about the skilled labor and time required for small-scale production of high-quality goods is not readily available to consumers, who are also unaware of the benefits of direct sales. In addition, distribution centers and other infrastructure needed to process locally grown food are not available, limiting the movement of goods from farmers to consumers.

• As explained by Erin Cinelli of the Spannocchia Foundation, the Tuscans who participated in the Spannocchia Symposium were also interested in how New England projects such as Farm-to-School (a program in which school cafeterias serve locally grown food) and the management of farmers markets are funded. In Italy, “nonprofits” able to fund projects are less common. This lack of funding makes it difficult for projects, such as the Mercatale, to sustain over time.

People: obstacles faced By stakeholders


The following obstacles hinder the integration of community and local agriculture. Recommendations will be made for overcoming these difficulties.

1) Information about the existing food system is not readily available to farmers, organizers, and consumers. This makes identifying the gaps and opportunities for changing, fitting into, and improving the food system more difficult.

2) There is a lack of collaboration between farmers, consumers, and people who are working towards similar goals. Efforts and resources are not consolidated, limiting how much people learn from one another. The goals of promoting sustainable agriculture, community, and a local food economy are mutually re-enforcing: supporting local agriculture requires a collaborative, integrated approach. Berenice Galli explains that this integration and synergy is missing from the current vision for the development of the food system.

People: major obstacles to local agriculture

Sustainable agriculture is labor intensive. In this photograph, Spannocchia employees and interns work in the organic vegetable garden.



landScaPe OF The mezzadRIa

Anyone who has wandered through the streets of a Tuscan town will have been charmed by the beauty of its opposite realities: the refined architecture of the townscape set against an elegant agricultural back-drop.

Tuscany’s agricultural history stretches back to the bronze age. Since then it has been dominated by agro-mercantile cultures: the Etruscan, the Roman and the period that has left the region with its familiar visual flavor: the mercantile city-states of the early- and mid-Renaissance.

Now famous for its beauty, the Tuscan landscape we see today was shaped by a system designed to feed powerful trading and banking states, which imposed stagnant legal and social systems that remained in place, unchanged, for over 800 years.

The ORIgInS OF The mezzadRIa

Italy’s location at the heart of the Mediterranean enabled its inhabitants to develop as trading cultures. Their success saw exponential growth from around the 8th century BC to the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century AD.

The Romans evolved a system of large, slave-run, farming estates to feed the Empire (“The History of Agriculture”). Ownership of large parcels of land enabled owners to secure contracts and lease land, transferring the risk of farming from the landowner to the cultivator.

By the 2nd century AD, a weakening economy made leasing less viable and slave-ownership was replaced by the practice of contracting coloni (originally meaning “cultivators of food”, but later meaning peasants) to work the land as sharecropping became widespread.

The earliest contract dates from 821, signed by the abbots of Monte Amiata, 50 km from Siena (OECD “Territorial Review”). By the 12th century, when Spannocchia is believed to have been built, the mezzadria was commonplace throughout central Italy

historical resources

ArchitectureofPienzaoverlookingagriculturalfields


The mezzadRIal cOnTRacT

The contract between a landless farmer and landowner defined the parcel of land, what practices must be performed on it, and the amount of produce that would be retained by the land owner, almost always fifty percent.

Having to give up half of their annual production forced the mezzadro (sharecropper) and his family to subsist on their parcel. They would also be contracted to provide maintenance services on the estate.

The land and farm machinery remained the property of the landlord, so the mezzadro and his family would occupy their allotted farm parcel including the casa colonica (from the Latin for ‘peasant’s house’ and still in use today), owning only their household possessions.

Agricultural methods were dictated by type and number – especially ploughing and manuring to maintain the land’s productivity. The landlord supplied work animals, such as oxen and donkeys.

The parcel size depended on the richness of the soil, but was calculated to provide double the mezzadria family’s needs, usually between two and six acres.

The system relied on closed loop production and consumption; new tenants would take over a parcel with mature olives and vines, land for crops and for grazing, some woodland and a kitchen garden from old tenants, to provide their annual food supply (Moretti, “The History of the Chianti”).

All farming was geared to direct consumption. The land parcels were small, so the traditional agricultural methods ensured that land was efficiently and compactly used.

Croplands and kitchen gardens were planted to provide an annual production of vegetables from spring greens to cardoons harvested until January to complement cereal crops, such as barley and farro (emmer). Wheat was an annual crop since bread and pasta were the base of the rural diet. These simple meals would occasionally be enriched with a small amount of animal protein.

The familiar rural patchwork is the product of mixed plantings between vines and olives interspersed with woodland that supplied the occupants with fuel, and foraging matter for the Cinta Senese (a local, heritage breed of pig).

The mezzadro produced pork-based salumi (processed meats) and sheep and cow’s cheeses at the farm. The only beef that was eaten was chianina, from the working oxen used on the farm estates of Tuscany.

The declIne OF The mezzadRIa

The mezzadria remained essentially unchanged until 1964 when the government abolished the drawing up of new contracts. In 1982, the law was changed to allow the immediate conversion of any remaining mezzadria contract to a lease agreement.

The reasons that this socially and economically stagnant system dominated for centuries are numerous,including the minimal capital outlay required by landowners to operate within a capitalist economy, because agricultural risk was divided, and finally because the mountainous landform may have slowed the refinement and modernization of agricultural practices (Buonconvento: Museo della Mezzadria Senese).

The Effects of Good Government of both Town and Country, Lorenzetti, Ambroggio 1338-40. A Cinta Senese pig forages in the foreground, croplands and vineyards in the distance.


Image Source: Fresco: Palazzo Publico, Siena.Imabe reproduced by kind permission of Directmedia Publishing GmbH http://www.digitale-bibliothek.de


demOgRaPhIc change

As transportation improved, and industry provided other employment, an alternative to the insular rural life under the mezzadria was offered to rural populations.

People began to abandon rural employment and from the 19th century there was a marked trend of immigration towards urban centers. By the Second World War, Siena was one of only three communes showing population increase. As a result of mass migration, there was a marked decrease of available labor in rural areas.

Agricultural land was affected by the population migration: many parcels were partially or completely abandoned and eventually reverted to woodland. Spannocchia’s historic land use maps reflect the influence on the land of people leaving the rural region.

SPannOcchIa: adaPTIng TO change

Once a sharecropping estate, Spannocchia has halved in size to 1100 acres. Its land use over time is reflective of the changes imposed on people and land due the decline of the Mezzadria.

In 1832, land use was mixed over the 1100 acres. By 1954, Spannocchia saw a distinct decrease in labor-intensive land use: crops including grapes, olives, coppiced chestnuts, cultivated land and pastures had diminished.

Overall, the trend of land use from 1832 to 2002 saw crop diversity decrease and forested land increase. This change in land use demonstrates how the Mezzadria affected Tuscany.

The map of 2002 shows a revival of pasture lands due to Spannocchia supporting a local heritage breed of pig, the Cinta Senese that requires pastures when it is not foraging on oak mast.

The land use at Spannocchia today is a regionally exceptional response to demographic changes and the abandonment of highly cultivated land.

Blue areas indicate communes with a population increase, red areas indicate a population decrease. These images demonstrate how rural populations consistently abandoned farming contracts in rural communes in favor of employment in cities.

Image source: www.demolab.org. Sotto Sistemi Dell’Antico Regime Demografico & La Transizione Demografica


1810-1829 1870-1889 1931-1940

Population decrease

Population increase

More than 10

More than 10

Between 0 to 10

Between 0 to 10

Legend

Population migration Patterns in Tuscany (annual average per 1,000 residents). The study area is circled.


SPannOcchIa: cuRRenT PROducTIOn

Spannocchia’s land use reflects the organizations attempt to be self-sustainable.

Currently, of the 900 acres of woodland, there are four kinds of forest: mature wood, mixed wood, coppiced wood and chestnut groves all scattered in stands of various sizes. Under a sustainable use management plan, Spannocchia utilizes traditional harvesting methods that provide renewal of the forest and respect wildlife habitat. When removing harvested wood from the forest, Spannocchia uses work horses to haul the timber as to not damage steep slopes and increase erosion that a tractor might.

There appears to be little cultivated land, but overall there are forty acres of grains and legumes for animal feed, along with wheat and farro for human consumption.

Additional crops and meat products from the site contribute to feeding Spannocchia’s guests and program participants. Examples of these include olive oil, wine, vegetables, honey, fruits, eggs, and meat from the Cinta Senese pigs. Although the woodlands are large, they are productive and provide firewood for heating the buildings. The landowner’s villa still stands and is the current site of the bed and breakfast, student housing and offices. The historic food processing buildings are still in use today. The former case coloniche still stand, but rather than housing mezzadri, the buildings now accommodate tourists.

cuRRenT eFFecTS OF The mezzadRIa

Though unacceptable as a social model, the mezzadria demonstrates through careful management of the land, it has been possible to feed densely populated rural communities in a sustainable, closed loop manner.

Farmers in the region are responding to the risk involved in farming in different ways. Some have adapted to supply commodity markets, a linear model that disconnects people from the food grown on the land around them, while others are trying to find markets for local, speciality produce.

At the fall of the mezzadria, the regional government was quick to invest in the promotion of regionally produced wine and olive oil, but they are now beginning to see the potential in strengthening the regions historical agricultural identity.

Answers to the following questions will provide solutions that restore balance between the Val di Merse’s differing types of farming operations, its residents and visitors:

• What is the size of the population that needs to be fed?

• What food is currently being grown in the region?

• How can the people of the region work toward a balanced agricultural system that contributes to a local food economy?

land use change 1832-2002, Tenuta di Spannocchia

1832 2002


Legend


1954


Identifying the people of a food system revealed some of the obstacles faced by those trying to promote local agriculture in the Val di Merse region. Evaluating historical resources suggested how land use patterns over time influenced local agriculture, and how these patterns contribute to some of the barriers of farming today.

This section looks at how current resources, such as topography, soil, and land cover, relate to agricultural production in the Val di Merse region. This analysis begins at the provincial scale to identify how larger demographic, land use, and agricultural patterns shape what is possible within the Val di Merse region.

agRIculTuRal and SOcIal TRendS In The PROvInce OF SIena

General information about relevant data for the province was provided by Berenice Galli.

current resources: Province of siena

DemographicsPopulation: 269,473 inhabitants; 33 of the 36 communes have less than 20,000 inhabitants Density: 68.3 inhabitants per square-kilometerEmployment by Sector:

% # of JobsService: 72.60% 69,000Industrial: 24.10% 30,900Agricultural: 3.30% 12,600

Principle Crops by Production Values (% of Total Agricultural Revenue):Wine production 35.0%Meat production 18.9%Cereal production 12.0%Oil production 6.6%

Agricultural Production

Agricultural Production Summary Wine, a commodity crop, brings in the most revenue for crops grown in the province. The majority of the wine produced is exported, responding to global demands instead of local needs.

Land Cover Summary The Province of Siena is primarily rural land; 37% is forested, and much of the land lies in agriculture and conservation. A corridor of agricultural production follows a northwest to southeast pattern (see map above). Between 1990 and 2000, the Province of Siena experienced a 5.45% decrease in utilized agricultural area—less than Tuscany and the entire country of Italy. A decrease in UAA implies that, although agricultural land remains, less land is actively farmed. In the province, the rural land that supports agriculture also has a low population density. 269,473 people live across 375,163, hectares averaging less than 1 person per hectare. These trends confirm the decrease in agriculture that came with the fall of Mezzadria.

The low population density and decrease in agricultural land might imply that the productivity of the land is not currently being maximized. In the study area, agricultural production seems even more limited (see map above). A more detailed look at crops, topography, and soils will help explore productivity in the Val di Merse region.

Land Cover Information Total Terrain: 375,163 ha Rural Land: 332,789 ha (88.71%) Forested Land: 140,000 ha (37%) Number of agricultural properties: 15,000 Number of active agricultural properties: 7,000 Utilized Agricultural Area* (UAA) in the province, region, and country:

UAA 1990 (ha) UAA 2000 (ha) Var.%Siena 195,446 184,800 -5.45%Tuscany 927,568 857,699 -7.53%Italy 15,045,525 13,206,297 -12.22%

*Of all agricultural land in the province, the Utilized Agricultural Area is the land that is actively being farmed

Demographics Summary The Province of Siena has a low population density, which is a response to the decline of the Mezzadria. The majority of jobs are in the service and industrial sectors. This confirms the trend of abandonment of the agricultural profession from rural regions.

Overall Agricultural Production in the Province of Siena

Study Area

Province of Siena

Tuscany

n

Image Source: Edoardo Costantini, “Environment”Areas not in agriculture


Above: Crop saturation of the landscape unit (%) by (A) vineyards and (B) olive tree groves in 2000.

current resources: Province of siena

SOIlS and TOPOgRaPhy

The study area lies just outside of the agricultural corridor that runs through the province (see map on previous page). As noted by Edoardo Costantini, author of a recent project that focuses on soils in the province, the soil of the corridor is alluvial, rich and well suited for agriculture (Costantini, “Environment”). The map below shows how most of the arable land in the province is concentrated in this flat corridor. Unlike the soils of this arable land, the soils in uphill areas are high in clays and fossil material and are thin due to water erosion (Costantini, “Environment”). These mountainous regions are mostly covered with woodland, as shown in green below. Most of the land in the study area is mountainous and wooded with erosion-prone soils. The soils and topography of the study area imply that the area is not adaptable to the large-scale agriculture that the flat corridor can accommodate. However, more research into soil suitability, irrigation, and other natural resources that influence agriculture is needed to identify potential crops.

cROPS

Knowing the soils and topography and current crop production indicates if the current land use is best suited to the area. The study area is wooded and mountainous, which might make it less suitable for grape and olive production. Vineyards and olive groves are concentrated in the regions of San Gimignano, Chianti, Montepulcino, and Montalcino (see maps below), which lie outside of the study area. Although wine has the highest production value in the Province of Siena, vineyards are sparse in the study area. Further research into the current land use of this area suggests what types of food production the Val di Merse region is capable of supporting.

grape and Olive cultivation In The Province Of Siena (2000)

concentrated vineyards

crop cover in the Province of Siena (2009)Data Source: Province of Siena

study areaarable land

A) VineyardsImage Source: Edoardo Costantini, “Environment”

B) Olive Tree Groves

18 mi18 km n


Regional information presents general characteristics, but soil conditions and crop suitability vary widely in the province due to the changing topography and to agricultural cultivation that has occurred for thousands of years. The particular resources available in the study area determine what the land can currently support. Three questions guide the analysis of these resources:

• Is the land being utilized for the production of food to feed the region?

• Can existing arable land meet the food needs of the local population?

• Can agricultural lands that were abandoned with the collapse of the Mezzadria become productive once again?

The study area is primarily covered with mountainous woodlands (green on the map on the facing page). Although the woodlands seem to limit agriculture, there may be an opportunity to increase the use of the woodland for agriculture: firewood can be cut from coppiced species and tree nuts can be harvested for human consumption or used as food by foraging livestock.

Following woodlands, the study area is predominately used for the production of cereals, wheat, fodder and pasture on arable land (indicated by yellow in the map on the facing page). The significant amount of land cover dedicated to fodder and pasture suggests that much of the agricultural land is dedicated to raising and feeding livestock. However, the map does not indicate if the livestock is used to feed the local population.

Arable land is interspersed with woodlands and small towns in the study area, as opposed to the large-scale continuous agricultural lands located elsewhere in the province. Vegetable and fruit production only take up a fraction of the land cover (pie chart at right). This suggests that local people might be acquiring their vegetables and fruits from elsewhere. There is little land dedicated to the growth of olives and grapes.

ImPlIcaTIOnS

The study area is not exploited for global market interests in commodity crops, such as wine and olive oil, and the mountainous topography makes the area less viable for large-scale industrial farming. Therefore, the area might be more suitable for small-scale farming. The pockets of agricultural land that surround small towns suggest that the landscape can support local agriculture: the food source seems proportional to the small populations of developed areas, and the distance between food sources and consumers is minimal.

FuRTheR ReSeaRch

In addition to evaluating the natural resources of the land, such as soils and topography, current agricultural production should be inventoried. Land cover describes broad land use patterns, but does not explain which crops are most valuable and whether or not the crops can feed the numbers and needs of a given population. The recommendations section outlines a process for a thorough evaluation of resources.

current resources: study area

Fodder 5%

Pasture 6%

Vegetables <1%

Fruit 1%

Citrus <1%Olives 3%

Recreation <1%

Other 1%

Wine 2%

Forestry 1%

Vegetative Land Cover in the Val di Merse Region (2000)Data Source: Patrizia Bonnaci

Both the GIS map on the facing page and the pie chart above suggest that woodlands cover slightly over half of the total surface. Cereals, wheat, fodder, pasture, and other crops and uses take up the remainder of the land.

Woodland 53%

Cereals 16%

Wheat 12%


cROP cOveR In The STudy aRea (2009)Data Source: Province of Siena

Spannnocchia

Siena


Specialized cultivation of individual varieties increased as mixed cultivation decreased from the fall of the Mezzadria to the present. This suggests that as the closed loop economies of the Mezzadria sharecropping system unraveled, production methods responded to national and/or global demand (which in this case, was for commodity crops).

Activities, the third component of a food system, are defined here as the ways in which people utilize agricultural resources. Activities include growing, harvesting, processing, transporting, marketing, consuming, and disposing of food products. The evaluation of the activities of the local food system in the study area and the identification of gaps and areas for improvement is incomplete due to the difficulty of acquiring data. However, included is an example of how an activity can be evaluated.

acTIvITy: gROwIng gRaPeS and OlIveS

Activities should be evaluated for economic, environmental, and cultural impact. This example focuses on the production of grapes and olives: although grapes and olives are not primary crops in the study area, these crops are grown intensively as monocultures in nearby regions. Converting the small-scale vineyards and olive groves in the Val di Merse region into monocultures could negatively impact the landscape and community in the following ways:

Environmental: There are two methods for viticulture and olive cultivation: specialized and mixed. Specialized vineyards and olive groves consist of only one crop, while mixed cultivation combines vines, olive trees, and other crops. Over the past couple of decades, mixed cultivation has decreased in popularity (refer to table below). Due to a higher yield and easier harvesting, monocultures have begun to dominate the landscape. Environmental consequences have been recorded: as explained in a recent soil analysis led by Edoardo Costantini and Roberto Barbetti, “at the province level, soil erosion risk and soil management difficulty almost doubled in the transition from the traditional mixed to the new specialized tree cultivation.”

Economic: Monocultures increase the risk of soil erosion: because monocultures are harvested at the same time, the land is completely exposed to the elements, such as the increased movement of rainwater across the surface. The resulting erosion destroys valuable property. Monocultures are also more vulnerable to complete devastation by a disease. This puts the farmer at financial risk if all of his or her assets are in the monoculture crop.

Social: Mixed cultivation of olives and vineyards defined the Tuscan landscape, contributing to its rural identity. Monocultures contribute to a generic landscape, negatively impacting the visual attractiveness of the region (Costantini, “Environment”).

Traditional mixed cultivation (top) presents a more varied and rich landscape texture than specialized monocultures (bottom) in the San Gimignano region, just to the north of the study area.

activities

Image Source: Costantini



land use and land cover change in the vergaia and borratello catchments, two regions in the San gimignano region


Image Source: Spannocchia; Photographer: Paul Avis Image Source: Spannocchia; Photographer: Paul Avis Image Source: Spannocchia; Photographer: Paul Avis

Images from around Spannocchia: terraced olive groves, vineyards and Cinta Senese piglets foraging under trees


case studies

Image Source: CISA


The following case studies suggest ways that Spannocchia can develop a sustainable, viable, and community supported local food system.

The case studies are primarily from New England, the region Spannocchia previously turned to for inspiration. The organizations included in this section share similar goals and obstacles with this study’s stakeholders.

The organizations are presented according to the scale at which they operate: comprehensive organizations coordinate the efforts of smaller organizations and individual food system participants; collaborative projects are endeavors that analyze aspects of the food system; individual participants are smaller organizations and groups that take on leadership roles in their local food system.

overview

case Studies

Comprehensive Organizations

Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA VT), Vermont

Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture (CISA), South Deerfield, Massachusetts

Collaborative Projects

Understanding Vermont’s Food Landscape: An Inventory and Assessment of Recent Local Food Initiatives, Vermont

Farm to Plate Strategic Plan, Vermont

IndividualFoodSystemParticipants

Shelburne Farms, Vermont

Bioagriturismo La Porta dei Parchi, Abruzzo, Italy


CISA, Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture, was founded in 1993 and is based in South Deerfield, Massachusetts.

PROblem

The Pioneer Valley is a rich, fertile floodplain along the Connecticut River in Western Massachusetts with a long history of agricultural production. Farms surrounding the rural towns produce potatoes, fruits, vegetables, and other food products. Instead of being consumed by valley residents, many of these products were shipped away to be processed and sold elsewhere. Farmers were not connected to consumers that live within the valley. A lack of knowledge about how farming contributes to the community and a lack of coordinated outreach to consumers sparked the creation of CISA: Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture.

ReSPOnSe

Community members of the Pioneer Valley banded together to support and improve the profile of local farmers through this nonprofit organization. CISA creates and oversees programs that integrate farmers, community members, and markets. One method CISA uses is marketing to improve this connection. Farmers receive the benefit of a unified local agricultural identity promoted by CISA’s marketing endeavors, advertising, and public relations outreach.

Marketing a Local Agricultural Identity: One such project is the Local Hero campaign. Participating farmers, producers, and retailers display the “Local Hero” logo which engages the public and increase support for local farmers by advertising their role in the local community. Food retailers from national chains to cooperative markets display the logo when selling produce from local farmers, indicating a product’s local origin and its contribution to the local food economy. Diners can select restaurants that buy locally, since they too can display the “Local Hero” logo. Today, according to CISA’s website, “202 farms, 46 restaurants, 31 grocery stores, eight landscape/garden centers, eight specialty producers, and 12 institutions have joined together to raise awareness and sales of locally grown farm products.” Eighty-two percent of people in the region (Franklin and Hampshire counties, MA) recognize the “Local Hero” logo. (CISA, “Local Hero Program”)

Building Community:Conversations with Kelly Coleman, Program Director of CISA, revealed how the organization searched for unique ways to connect community members and farmers. CISA focused on encouraging people to support their “neighborhood farmer,” demonstrating that farmers are important members of the community. “We are a Local Hero Farm” signs are placed on farm properties, increasing the visibility of farmers in the landscape. CISA also hosts annual dinners that bring farmers and non-farming community members together for local food themed meals. The phrase “Local Hero” itself communicates the value of farmers to the community. CISA redirected the desire to support local agriculture to the benefit of supporting your neighborhood farmer in addition to reaping the health benefits of locally grown food.

Improving Agricultural Infrastructure: Looking forward, CISA has acknowledged a growing demand for local produce and is finding ways to improve local infrastructure to help new markets gain access to locally produced food. CISA researches the need for and feasibility of potential infrastructure that can support local agriculture, such as small-scale slaughterhouses and winter crop storage facilities. The organization also coordinates farmers, private funders, and businesses to engage in discussions about the financial incentives of investing in agricultural infrastructure.

comprehensive organization: cisa

Image Source: CISA


aPPlIcaTIOn

The Val di Merse region is also an agriculturally rich region, and farmers are similarly disconnected from local markets.

• Where do the residents of the Val di Merse shop for food?

• How do they know what food stores are available?

• How many grocery stores sell local food?

• How many consumers are in the Val di Merse?

• How interested are regional farmers in creating a local agricultural identify?

• Is regional branding an effective way to communicate the dedication of farmers producing high-quality food for the community?

• How will farmers react to the consolidated marketing of a Val di Merse agricultural identity aiming to connect local food to local markets?

Resources:information for this case study was gathered from the following sources:cisa Website: http://buylocalfood.org/cisa’s local hero Program: http://buylocalfood.org/page.php?id=15cisa and agricultural infrastructure: http://buylocalfood.org/page.php?id=61

The logo conveys the “heroic” dedication of farmers and purveyors to supporting local agriculture.

This farm advertises its locally grown products to the community.

Image Source: CISA

Image Source: CISA

The “Local Hero” logo indicates the participation of supporting a local agricultural identify.

Image Source: CISA


comprehensive organization: nofaThe Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA) is a nonprofit organization that coordinates seven state chapters, all with the purpose of supporting and educating people about local, organic agriculture. NOFA Vermont (VT), founded in 1971, is the oldest chapter.

PROblem

Prior to the creation of NOFA VT, farmers looking for a market for their organic produce were not connected to people looking for healthy, local food. Farmers did not have the financial support and information that they needed in order to “go organic” and to sustain their businesses over time. Consumers could not easily locate organic food in their communities. Many children and families did not have access to affordable, healthy food. The benefits of organic agriculture were not widely understood. The creation of NOFA VT in 1971 responded to the barriers between organic production and consumption.

ReSPOnSe

NOFA Vermont responds to a lack of collaboration between people trying to promote organic agriculture in the state. The organization seeks to increase the organically farmed land in the state, while also increasing the accessibility to and awareness of local, organic food products. Various projects carried out by NOFA VT support organic agriculture by working on different scales to target different demographics of the Vermont population.

CoordinatingCertification: In 1985, prior to the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) organic certification, NOFA VT created a certification branch (VOF: Vermont Organic Farmers) to define and generate standards for organic agriculture. Local farmers’ input helped shape the standards, ensuring that they reflected the concerns of the people of Vermont. In 2002, the USDA accredited the Vermont organic standards. NOFA VT coordinates the USDA organic certification with the Vermont-specific standards, providing farmers with information about the process.

ConnectingFarmers,Interns,andWorkers:The “Apprentice & Farm Worker Program” connects farmers with unemployed individuals and individuals seeking to learn about running a farm operation. An online database lists positions available to applicants. Participants of the program also receive invitations to workshops and conferences. This program brings young people into the farming profession.

OfferingFinancialSupporttoFarmers:NOFA VT makes information about national and state grants available to start-up farmers, posting grant qualifications, details, and contact information on the website. The NOFA Vermont Revolving Loan Fund, in collaboration with a state bank, offers loans to farmers who have difficulty acquiring them due to a lack of credit history and the need for short-term capital. Also in collaboration with banks, NOFA VT’s Energy Loan Fund provides loans for farmers employing energy-efficient technologies.

IncreasingAccesstoLocalFood: NOFA VT’s Farm Share Program connects seniors and low-income adults and families with CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture: a form of direct sales whereby customers prepay at the start of the season for a weekly share of produce). The cost of food from the CSAs is subsidized through fund-raising conducted by NOFA VT and donations from farmers and community members.

Creating a Place for the Exchange of Information: The NOFA VT website connects consumers with farmers by providing a publicly available database of organic farms, CSAs, farm stands, and farmers markets. An annual Winter Conference offers workshops, social events, and lectures about growing organically. Topics range from the process of acquiring a farm to bringing agriculture to school curricula to utilizing social media to connect farmers and consumers. These virtual and physical places require collaboration with all of the people that participate in a food system. (Refer to the “Resources” box on the facing page for website addresses)

Building Community from the Ground Up: NOFA VT’s “Farm to Community Mentors” program assigns people to specific towns and regions that can build relationships between farmers, schools, and communities. These individuals connect people with information about agriculture, and create activities that bring people and farmers together economically through marketing and direct sales and socially through education.


aPPlIcaTIOn

As evidenced by the success of the Mercatale, there is a market in the Val di Merse region for locally grown, organic food. However, farmers still struggle to make their businesses economically viable. As mentioned by the stakeholders, people still have difficulty locating organic produce and understanding why it costs more than produce sold at the grocery store.

• How many people in the Val di Merse use the internet as a research tool? What government branches can help connect farmers with untapped markets for local, organic food products?

• How do people know that purchasing locally produced food is good for them and for the farmers?

• Who can help farmers find employees and interns?• Where are current places that hold informational

workshops and where could they be held?• How is the art and profession of agriculture taught in

the Val di Merse?• Would clarifying the requirements of and differences

between organic certifications make the process of going organic easier?

Resources:information for this case study was gathered from the following sources:nofa interstate council: http://www.nofa.org/index.phpnofa vt: http://nofavt.org/NOFA VT “Finding Food” Database: http://nofavt.org/find-organic-foodnofa vt marketing information: http://nofavt.org/market-organic-foodnofa vt services for farmers: http://nofavt.org/grow-organic-foodnofa vt fact sheets: http://nofavt.org/resources/fact-sheets

Image Source: NOFA


The Farm to Plate Strategic Plan is a collaborative publication that develops a 10-year vision to strengthen Vermont’s food system.

PROblem

The state of Vermont has a rich, agriculturally productive landscape. In the mid-nineteenth century, Vermont was known as New England’s breadbasket. At the turn of the twentieth century, Vermonters realized that farmers could not compete with the large-scale production taking place in the midwestern United States. Although farmers continue to produce crops and products for export, such as maple syrup, milk, and cheese, many have diversified crop production and embraced local consumer markets. However, Vermont still lacks a comprehensive vision for the future that would respond to changes in consumer demands and to the rising price of oil. Government policies, educational programs, nonprofit initiatives, farmers, and consumers are not currently connected through a shared vision for how the food system may evolve in the coming decades. There is not a thorough understanding of the components of the current food system. Jobs, economic development, and access to healthy food are not coordinated, limiting the success of local agriculture.

ReSPOnSe

The government-funded Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund recognized that a thorough evaluation of the current food system would help increase economic development and create jobs in the food and farm sector and improve access to healthy local foods in the state. They created the Farm to Plate Strategic Plan, which demonstrates the economic, social, and cultural importance of agriculture to Vermont. The document stresses how the relationships between farming, community, and the local food economy will gain even greater importance in the coming decade.

Evaluating the Components: The Farm to Plate Strategic Plan looks at people, resources, and activities. It quantifies the people in the agriculture industry and how they use the resources. It then looks at the activities that take place in a food system, following the processes that food undergoes from its growth to consumption to disposal. For each activity, the document looks into the number of establishments, number of employees, yearly growth, and determines if there is an opportunity for growth

Quantifying the Population’s Needs: The document acknowledges the value of agriculture in Vermont; statewide nearly 18.8% of jobs and 13.2% of businesses are involved in the agricultural industry. It demonstrates the necessity for local, healthy food as 58.2% of Vermont adults were overweight or obese and nearly 9% had diabetes in 2009. Locally produced food accounts for an estimated 5% of food purchased in Vermont.

Bringing People Together to Create a Comprehensive Evaluation: More than twelve-hundred Vermont residents contributed to this document. The plan involves people from all aspects of the current food system, from production to disposal, or “soil-to-soil.” Through this collaboration, goals and prioritized strategies emerged that will respond to the needs of Vermonters over the next decade. Making this information public acknowledges the problem. This tool helps gain public support.

aPPlIcaTIOn

The Val di Merse region, although not as large as the state of Vermont, is also an agriculturally productive landscape. It has a history of supplying the community with food. It too lacks a comprehensive vision for the future.

• Can evaluating the current food system provide a framework for a future food system plan?

• Who are the stakeholders interested in evaluating the food system?

• Who are the people that need to be contacted in order to complete this evaluation?

• How can organizations, such as Spannocchia, take on different parts of the evaluation?

• What resources, such as time, energy, and access to data, are necessary to complete this evaluation?

collaborative Project: farm to Plate strategic Plan


SUPPORT SYSTEM P

olicy-Makers | Government Agencies | Nonpro�t Advocacy, Program, and Technical Assistance O

rganizations | Trade Assocations and Co-ops | Educators & Researchers | Farm and Food Incubators | Funders, Lenders, and Investors |

Grass

roots

Vol

unte

ers

FARM & FOOD ENTERPRISES

3.2 Farm Inputs

1,958 765

3.3 Production

19,519 6,984

3.4 Processing

4,356 457

3.5 Wholesale Distribution

2,288 263

3.6 Retail Distribution

27,901 2,515

3.1 Consumer Demand

3.7 Nutrient Management

>$2 Billion in Sales

Data not available

10,974 total 13.2% of private

businesses

55,581 total18.8% of private jobs

BusinessesJobs

TOTAL JOBS & BUSINESSES

|

Cons

umer

Edu

catio

n an

d M

arke

ting

|

SUPPORT SYSTEM P

olicy-Makers | Government Agencies | Nonpro�t Advocacy, Program, and Technical Assistance O

rganizations | Trade Assocations and Co-ops | Educators & Researchers | Farm and Food Incubators | Funders, Lenders, and Investors |

Grass

roots

Vol

unte

ers

FARM & FOOD ENTERPRISES

3.2 Farm Inputs

1,958 765

3.3 Production

19,519 6,984

3.4 Processing

4,356 457

3.5 Wholesale Distribution

2,288 263

3.6 Retail Distribution

27,901 2,515

3.1 Consumer Demand

3.7 Nutrient Management

>$2 Billion in Sales

Data not available

10,974 total 13.2% of private

businesses

55,581 total18.8% of private jobs

BusinessesJobs

TOTAL JOBS & BUSINESSES

|

Cons

umer

Edu

catio

n an

d M

arke

ting

|

Employment and establishments figures for farm inputs, food production, food processing, wholesale distribution, and retail distribution are based on the Vermont Department of Labor, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (second quarter, 2010), and the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2008 nonemployer statistics.

Vermont’s Food System

Image Source: Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund

Resources:information for this case study was gathered from the following sources:vermont sustainable Jobs fund Website: http://www.vsjf.org/Farm to Plate Strategic Plan Website: http://www.vsjf.org/project-details/5/farm-to-plate-initiative

This is a summary of the amount of people involved in agricultural activities of the food system. The outer ring of the diagram shows people who work to support agriculture in Vermont.


Understanding Vermont’s Local Foods Landscape: An Inventory and Assessment of Recent Local Food Initiatives.

Prepared by Virginia Nickerson for the Vermont Sustainable Agriculture Council, 2008.

PROblem

Over the past decade, Vermont has experienced a proliferation of initiatives that promote local foods. However, according to the Vermont Sustainable Agriculture Council, these initiatives are not coordinated, creating the risk of “diverse groups…undertaking similar activities without coordination” (Nickerson, “Understanding Vermont’s Local Food Landscape”). This lack of connectivity implies that people might miss out on the chance to learn from one another. Another implication relates to more practical matters: groups working towards similar goals might be competing for the same grants or for the same partnerships with larger organizations.

ReSPOnSe

Collaboration between organizations may allow groups to share resources such as infrastructure, software, and funding. The Vermont Sustainable Agriculture Council (SAC) was created in 1995 by the University of Vermont Center for Sustainable Agriculture and the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets. The SAC determined that local food initiatives currently being made in Vermont should be reviewed and catalogued in order to identify opportunities for expanding the production and consumption of local food. This report employs several methods for addressing the problem:

DefiningtheScope: Instead of studying producers, processors, distributors, and consumers, this study focuses on the people and organizations attempting to promote local agriculture. The document begins by identifying what “local” means to the region (in this case, the state of Vermont). It also defines “initiatives” loosely as efforts that seek to promote local food.

Employing Various Research Methods: Methods for acquiring information about current initiatives included telephone and in-person interviews with organizations, email surveys sent to organizations, queries regarding local food initiatives posted through online list serves, and attendance at workshops and conferences which organizations were expected to attend. Diversifying research methods led to a higher percentage of response.

Identifying Actors: The project identifies “actors” in the local food landscape, chronicling their efforts, motivation and relationships in order to determine gaps and opportunities for collaboration and communication. These actors were organized according to the different scales at which they operate, whether at the statewide, regional, or community level.

EvaluatingtheFoodSystem:The project also looks at the current food system, in order to identify gaps that such “actors” can bridge to increase the production and consumption of local food.

Identify Opportunities for Collaboration: Inventorying local food initiatives allowed groups to identify opportunities for collaboration. In this case, recommendations included creating a place for or means of exchanging information, creating an event that brings actors together, and developing an action plan to strengthen Vermont’s food system, which would involve a thorough analysis of the existing food system.

aPPlIcaTIOn

The Mercatale is a recent initiative in the Val di Merse region that promotes local agriculture.

• Are there other projects and organizations in the Val di Merse region that are making similar efforts?

• Are there people who want to help this effort, but do not know how?

• Who are the retailers, educators, and policy makers in the Val di Merse region interested in promoting local agriculture?

collaborative Project: understanding vermont’s local food landscape

Resources:information for this case study was gathered from the following source:Understanding Vermont’s Local Food Landscape is accessible at the following link: http://nofavt.org/find-organic-food/find-useful-links

sustainable agriculture council: http://www.uvm.edu/~susagctr/?Page=susagcl.html


9

Figure 1. Components of a local food system

PROCESSINGDairies and

cheesemakersSlaughterhouses

CanneriesBreweries and winemakers

Community KitchensFood Venture Centers

DISTRIBUTION: MARKETING

BuyersAdvertisers

Marketing Advisors

DISTRIBUTION: TRANSPORTATION

Wholesale Disttributors

Food Hubs/Shipping Centers

Transportation for e-marketers

Vermont FreshnetworkGrowers Co-ops

Foodbank

DISTRIBUTION: SOURCING

Gleaning programsFarm stands & CSAs

Farmers marketsCoops & General

storesGroceries and Supermarkets

Food banks & food shelves

E-marketing systems

CONSUMPTIONHomes

RestaurantsSchools and Hospitals

BusinessesCommunity suppersFairs and Festivals

Soup Kitchens

WASTE & NUTRIENT MANAGEMENTOn-farm nutrient

managementRestaurants &

InstitutionsSolid Waste Districts

Composting Companies

PRODUCTIONFarms

Incubator FarmsCommunity and School GardensHome gardens

Plant-a-Row programs

CHANGE AGENTS Policy-Makers

Government Agencies Non-Profits

Educators and Researchers Innovative Farmers and

Entrepreneurs Funders and Investors Grassroots volunteers

ActorsofaFoodSystemA local food system requires the coordination of actors in

every aspect from production to waste management.

Identifying the local actors helps determine who is missing

from the system.

Image Source: Virginia Nickerson

Identifying People Across ScalesIdentifying organizations that work towards similar goals on

different levels (statewide, regional, community/local) suggests areas for

collaboration between groups that might otherwise be separated by the

scale at which they operate.

Image Source for both diagrams: Virginia Nickerson


This 1,400-acre working farm is a nonprofit, member-supported historical agricultural estate built in the late 1800s in Shelburne, Vermont.

PROblem

The Great Depression of the 1930s and ‘40s diminished the farm’s viability as a business. By the 1950s and ‘60s, many buildings had fallen into disrepair. The owner of the estate, father of current Shelburne Farms president Alec Webb, was going to decrease the size of the farm and sell off parcels for development. In 1969, the children of the Webb family banded together to prevent the fragmentation of the historic estate, recognizing that they needed to find a way to ensure the farm’s long-term success (Schwartz, “Gilded Age Glory).

ReSPOnSe

Acknowledging the Problem: The heirs of the estate acknowledged the difficulty for the farm alone to continue and made necessary changes to ensure its future success.

Preserving the Establishment: The heirs transformed the estate into a nonprofit that educates visitors about such topics as conservation and preservation. It is a productive farm fulfilling the mission of education and promoting stewardship within a sustainable working landscape.

Broadening the Business Base: Through on-site activities such as hiking trails, hosting special events, staying at the inn, educational programs, and dining at the restaurant, Shelburne Farms reaches to the locals and visitors by providing educational and recreational opportunities related to agriculture.

EngagingtheCommunityandLocalFoodEconomy:Shelburne Farms partners with local producers who sell their goods at the restaurant and on the property. Shelburne Farms hosts local artisans on site, such as the Beeken Woodshop and Shelburne Vineyards.

aPPlIcaTIOn

As mentioned by Erin Cinelli of the Spannocchia Foundation, Spannocchia’s mission, activities, and history are very similar to those of Shelburne Farms. The foundation is already looking to Shelburne Farms for inspiration about making the transition from a private to a more public entity.

• Who in the region can Spannocchia partner with to promote the farm, the importance of sustainable agriculture and the natural heritage?

• Spannocchia’s programs are directed towards tourists, but what additional activities can Spannocchia provide to attract locals?

• How can Spannocchia celebrate the region’s local heritage with the community?

individual Participant: shelburne farms

Shelburne Farms combines preservation, conservation, and agriculture.

ImageSource:ShelburneFarms


ShelburneFarmscombinesagriculturewithhands-oneducation.

Restored, historical buildings house modern events and activities, attracting visitors to the site.

Image Source: Shelburne Farms

Resources:information for this case study was gathered from the following sources:shelburne farms Website: http://www.shelburnefarms.org/article: schwartz, James h. “Gilded age Glory.” Preservation september | october 2010: 46-52.

Image Source: Shelburne Farms


Bioagriturismo La Porta dei Parchi, located in Abruzzo, Italy, is an agriturismo (agri-tourism vacation destination) and sheep farm that sells its products to a local and global market through its “Adopt-a-Sheep” program.

PROblem

High in the Apennines, La Porta dei Parchi faces similar agricultural difficulties as the Val di Merse. Young people have left the region as farming has become increasingly unappealing due to the difficulty of farming in the region. Traditional farming methods were abandoned.

ReSPOnSe

The La Porta dei Parchi farm raises awareness of the plight of sheep farmers in Abruzzo, by encouraging interested individuals to invest in its flock through its “Adopt-a-Sheep” program, in exchange for an annual share of cheese, wool products and local olive oil. The farm benefits by receiving a capital advance, and they work hard to develop strong relationships with their “adoptive parents” to encourage reinvestment. By making a success story of local farming, it has become a more attractive business proposition, thus strengthening local agriculture. In recent years, 15 new jobs have been created in a village of 300 inhabitants, and more young people seek work locally.

CelebratingTraditionalSustainableFarmingMethods:The farm has continued the practice of transhumance, or nomadic shepherding, which involves the movement of the herds from lowland to upland pastures in the summer months. This rests the winter pastures which would otherwise be over-grazed, and provides the herds with ready supplies of water during the hotter months. These ancient practices help protect the local environment and strengthen regional identity.

Protecting Traditional Production Methods: La Porta dei Parchi brought together farming businesses, creating a consortium of local producers. Together they registered a trademark for locally, traditionally-made foods. The consortium worked with the local policy-makers and the university to gain an exemption from European Union regulations that stipulated the production of cheeses in modern facilities with stainless steel instruments. Local farmers have been able to continue making cheese with traditional implements.

Protecting Land: The consortium was also able to protect the network of trails used to migrate the herds in nomadic

shepherding. This helped to create Italy’s largest protected park area, which increases Abruzzo’s value as a tourist destination.

Employing Successful Marketing Strategies: The farm has employed two useful strategies. First, the “Adopt-a-Sheep” program provides a warm, fuzzy face for what is essentially an annual CSA. Second, online sales play an unusually large role in the farm’s marketing strategy compared to many Italian farm businesses.

Providing Educational Vacations: Through a variety of themed learning vacations, the farm ensures that the unique and fragile traditions and practices of the region are advertised. This safe-guards the continued knowledge of skills that the local network of shepherds and artisans are passing on.

aPPlIcaTIOn

Both Spannochia and La Porta dei Parchi practice sustainable agriculture and are dedicated to the preservation of rural landscapes and traditions.

• Can Spannocchia use online sales and friendly marketing to raise awareness of sustainable agricultural practices in today’s local food system?

• How can Spannocchia interest visitors by showcasing traditional agricultural methods?

• Could these same practices contribute to stabilizing cash-flow and strengthening their business?

• Who are the local producers Spannocchia could develop a regional product identity with?

Resources:information for this case study was gathered from the following source:la Porta dei Parchi Website: http://www.laportadeiparchi.it/

individual Participant:Bioagriturismo la Porta dei Parchi


Transhumance:theflockisherdedtothehighlandsinthesummermonths

NunzioMarcelli,co-ownerofLaPortadeiParchiFarm

Image Source: Bioagriturismo La Porta dei Parchi

Image Source: Bioagriturismo La Porta dei Parchi


recommendations

Image Source: Spannocchia, Photographer: Paul Avis


overview

The people of the Val di Merse have recognized that the way in which food is produced and exchanged needs to change in order to improve the economy, build community, revive historical traditions, and increase access to local, healthy food. Spannocchia has joined in these conversations about local food production, and is beginning to embrace the opportunity of connecting with the local community through integrating with the food system.

In order to explore how people in the Val di Merse region can overcome obstacles to local agriculture, the components of the existing food system were studied. The first set of recommendations, titled “Obtain Relevant Data about Existing Food System,” will outline how participants of the food system can continue this evaluation in order to determine areas for improvement.

The case studies revealed how organizations in both New England and Italy responded to similar obstacles, and how these responses might be applied in the Val di Merse region. The second set of recommendations, titled “Increase Collaboration,” will outline how Spannocchia can work with other members of the community to apply these methods to promote a local food economy.

Recommendation 1: Obtain Relevant data about existing Food System

Recommendation 2: Increase collaboration

Spannocchia interns participate in team building exercises underneath the canopy of an organically managed olive grove.

Organically-grown grapes are processed at Spannocchia to make wine for visitors and program participants.

Image Source: Spannocchia Image Source: Spannocchia


STRaTegy: IdenTIFy PeOPle

Evaluation to be Completed by the Val di Merse Conversations with the community leaders and producers of the Mercatale revealed that there are people producing fresh, local goods, but these people are not connected to an aware market.

Communicating with the following people can help understand their connections to one another or lack thereof.• Farmers•Value-added producers/processors• Policy-makers•Community leaders•Organizations•Retailers•Consumers

Implications of Evaluation Identifying the people of the food system reveals gaps and opportunities for building connections. Building a network increases awareness of all participants and creates a safety net for supporting a local food system. Connecting organizations consolidates resources and efforts currently being made to support local agriculture. Through the process of identifying and gathering information about food systems participants, relationships between people can be built.

Example from Case Studies CISA and Understanding Vermont’s Local Food Landscape CISA serves as a conduit for information between markets, farmers, and consumers. The Understanding Vermont’s Local Food Landscape document identifies and connects organizations promoting local agriculture.

Application to Spannocchia The following recommendations can be fulfilled by Spannocchia alone or with other organizations. In either case, these recommendations can be fulfilled in phases. •Continue to connect farmers and producers through the

Mercatale• Inventory current food system participants to identify

possible gaps and then make connections between them• Identify all producers and retailers in the Val di Merse

to provide consumers with food supplies• Survey farmers and community members about supply

and demand (See Appendix A)•Contact community leaders and policy-makers willing

to try to improve the well-being of farmers

recommendation 1:obtain relevant data about the food system

People sharing information about local herbsImage Source: Spannocchia, Photographer: Paul Avis


STRaTegy: evaluaTe exISTIng ReSOuRceS

Evaluation to be Completed by the Val di MerseThe crop cover, land use patterns, and topography revealed that the study area may be fit for small-scale farming. Further evaluation of resources, such as local water sources and soil, will determine which crops are suitable for the region. •Water: Accessibility for irrigation• Soil: Water-holding capacity, nutrient availability,

organic matter levels, structure, pH•Climate: Seasonal day lengths, degree days, average

temperature, rainfall, humidity, wind•Topography: Aspect, orientation, slope, erosion

susceptibility•Crops: Investigation of what is and could be grown based

on resources listed above. Does food produced meet the nutritional needs of the people? Which crops are in demand?

Implications of Evaluation Knowing the resources of the land determines crop suitability and how much production the land is able to support. This evaluation will also help determine the area needed to support the local population.

Example from Case Studies Farm to Plate Strategic PlanThe document studies the type and amount of food produced in Vermont. It considers the natural resources of the state, such as soils and water. This shows where crops can be grown, and which crops can be increased to feed the Vermont population.

Application to Spannocchia Spannocchia has already partnered with Portland State University and other organizations to assess historic land use and crop cover for various estates in Tuscany. Spannocchia can build upon this historical evaluation, and partner with current producers and organizations to evaluate current crop production within the study area. Spannocchia can obtain crop information from other farmers by creating and distributing questionnaires. The questionnaires can record other food system data as well. See Appendix A. They can evaluate and distribute information about current crop production, such as the agricultural census provided by Patrizia Bonnaci. This can help in coordinating crop growth to adequately supply the study area with locally produced food, which will then determine what products need to be imported from elsewhere.

Resource: SoilsBy locating soils suitable for agriculture, one can determine where and how much agriculture can take place. In Vermont, soils most suitable for agriculture are concentrated near Lake Champlain. However, other prime agricultural soils are located near major roadways.



STRaTegy: dOcumenT cuRRenT acTIvITIeS

Evaluation to be Completed by the Val di MerseThe design team evaluated the activity of olive and grape growth in the Food System Component section. The evaluation made it clear that activities are the product of people using resources and all three components are closely related.

Evaluating the activities helps determine long-term effects that activities have on people and the environment. This reveals gaps that were overlooked through the evaluations of people and resources, and will indicate changes that can be made in order to better support a local food system.

When evaluating an activity, the following questions should be explored:

• Who is organizing and carrying out the activity?• Where is the activity taking place? • Where is food produced?• What methods are used for this activity?• How does the activity influence other aspects of the

food system? • What influences the activity?

Examples of activities to be evaluated:• Growing• Harvesting• Processing• Packaging• Transporting• Marketing, Consuming, Researching• Disposing, Recycling, and Managing Waste

Implications of Evaluation The evaluation will reveal if activities efficiently use time, energy, and natural resources. For example, does the time and labor required for hand harvesting outweigh the petroleum consumption and land degradation that may come with mechanical harvesting?

Example from Case Studies Farm to Plate Strategic PlanThe document determines the most prevalent activities of the Vermont food system and shares how many people are involved in it. For example, there are 457 businesses and 4,356 jobs in the activity of processing in Vermont.

Application to Spannocchia Spannocchia can evaluate the activities that happen on site to assess their own efficiency and use of resources or to share methods of self-sufficiency with other producers.

As a single entity, it would be difficult for Spannocchia to analyze the multitude of activities taking place within the region. However, based on Spannocchia’s general understanding of the regional activities, Spannocchia could direct and work with other organizations that have the personnel and resources to carry out these evaluations.



recommendation 2: increase collaboration

The connections among the people, resources and activities that make up a food system need to be strengthened. The following strategies propose ways in which Spannocchia can get more involved in its local food system. Roles that the farm and foundation could assume to help shape the future of food security in the region are also described.

STRaTegy: cOnSOlIdaTe

Consolidate marketing to promote a local agricultural iden-tity by selling local goods under a regional brand.

Implications: Branding helps farmers promote their prod-ucts to an informed consumer market. This distinguishes special, regional foods in the marketplace. Consumers can readily identify local food by the brand.

Examples from Case Studies: CISA and Bioagriturismo La Porta dei Parchi CISA creates a cohesive identity for local producers and goods by marketing a brand, the “Local Hero” logo. The Bioagriturismo La Porta dei Parchi created a regional trademark that markets locally, traditionally produced foods including cheese, salami and prosciutto. Using the brand, the region has been able to defend the integrity of local foods, strengthening the regional gastronomic identity.

Application to Spannocchia:• Contact other producers in the Val di Merse to start a

regional brand• Put farm biographies on locally produced food to asso-

ciate the product with the farmer• Actively market the brand at local restaurants, retailers

and farms to get the logo in the public eye• Use radio to advertise regional identity

STRaTegy: cOORdInaTe

Coordinate funding, marketing, and an exchange of infor-mation between farmers, consumers, and other professionals.

Implications: Coordinating a “one-stop-shop” for information and services helps busy farmers save time, while encouraging them to think more strategically about their businesses.

Examples from Case Studies: CISA and NOFACISA and NOFA connect farmers to financial services, funding, loans and grants. Both organizations offer informational workshops for farmers and make fact sheets and other resources available online to help farmers with issues such as business practice, business development, etc.

Application to Spannocchia:• Become the organization that identifies the needs of

farmers (in terms of social and financial support) in the region and coordinates methods for bringing farmers together to discuss these needs and share solutions

• Host events like community dinners, how-to sessions and tours that raise funds for providing services to farmers

• Provide informational resources to consumers and farmers

STRaTegy: cOnnecT

Strategy: Connect the food to the people: connect society’s demand for healthy and accessible food with farmers looking for markets for their products

Implications: By connecting people and organizations to farmers and local food, the community benefits socially and economically, while farmers are guaranteed a strong market for their products.

Examples from Case Studies: CISA and NOFABoth organizations give multiple demographic groups the opportunity to access local, healthy food. For example, through Farm Share programs they are able to connect seniors and low-income families with CSAs . They also provide online databases that help people to locate farmer’s markets, restaurants, farm stands, etc.

Application to Spannocchia:• Adapt the Mercatale to respond to consumer needs

through market research (product interest and demand)• Source local food directly from farms to larger

institutions like schools, hospitals and offices• Begin a CSA share program using vegetables produced

at Spannocchia, starting with neighbors of the farm, and branching out from there

• Create an online database that lists farm stands and retailers selling and using locally produced food


STRaTegy: engage

Strategy: Engage both locals and tourists by connecting the historic, cultural tradition of agriculture with current food production in the area. Implications:Making the link between traditional and modern agriculture visible encourages people to engage with farmers and farming, creating synergy between the community, agriculture and the local food economy. Examples from Case Studies: Shelburne Farms and Bioagriturismo La Porta dei ParchiLa Porta dei Parchi uses historical and cultural traditions to connect its farming activities to its context and community; running a bed and breakfast on-site enables visitors to share those traditions. Shelburne Farms uses historic facilities to house educational and recreational activities for locals and tourists, celebrating the magnificence of the buildings and landscape. This allows the public to enjoy surroundings that would have been closed to them in past times. Application to Spannocchia:

• Create tours of historical agricultural properties, similar to Spannocchia, in the Val di Merse region and advertise them at the Mercatale

• Have demonstrations of traditional agricultural practices on site and at the Mercatale

• Encourage locals and tourists to actively connect with local agriculture through tastings, hosting restaurant evenings and farm tours

• Establish a community center to bring local people together over history and food. Offer regular events and programs such as cooking classes that engage locals and educate them about the connection between current food production and history

STRaTegy: lOOK OuTwaRdStrategy: Look Outward: Collaborate with other local organizations and businesses.

Implications: Engaging with local businesses and organizations strengthens the network of support within the community. Programs that extend beyond food engage businesses and groups of people with other interests.

Examples from Case Studies: Shelburne Farms and Bioagriturismo La Porta dei ParchiRather than continue as an independent, private entity, Shelburne Farms looked outward, becoming a nonprofit organization that engages in many partnerships with other businesses and educational organizations. La Porta dei Parchi worked with farmers, the local university and the local government to protect their regional farming and food production methods.

Application to Spannocchia:•Rent out a workspace and retail area on site to local

artisans like potters or furniture makers• Invite people who produce food not made at

Spannocchia to sell their unique products on site•Create educational programs with local schools to

engage children in the natural history, food tradition, and agriculture of the area

•Collaborate with different organizations to protect the regional identity

Withbothhistoricalbuildingsandproductivevineyardsinthedistance,Randall Stratton teaches interns about the history of agriculture at the Spannocchia property.

Image Source: Spannocchia; Photographer: Paul Avis


Cinta Senese pigs, a heritage breed native to the hills around Siena, roam the Spannocchia landscape

Image Source: Molly Callister

conclusion

A food system’s strength relies on its foundations. The Val di Merse region’s food system is built on a long-standing tradition of agriculture in the historically rich region, where for centuries farmers were resourceful in their use of the land.

The region’s food system components were left in a state of fragmentation as the Mezzadria declined. The inhabitants of the Val di Merse abandoned traditional agriculture for industrial jobs in cities, or reacted to a market demand for the production of commodity crops, while a fraction of the people remained, struggling to earn a living farming the Tuscan landscape.

Community leaders of the Val di Merse region’s food system aim to promote the well-being of farmers, community and the land. The past has proven that the landscape was capable of supporting much larger populations than it does today and their goal is to set in motion community supported, small-scale farming.

Spannocchia is beginning to find its place in a global, movement to revive local agriculture; its land supports the growth of crops and animals that feed the Castello employees, students and guests as well as the residents who

shop at the Mercatale farmers market. The woodlands on the property are sustainably harvested to maintain forest health and habitat, which in turn support wildlife. Along with its community allies, Spannocchia can use its current efforts to inspire and educate the community of the Val di Merse about the benefits of supporting a local food economy.

New England farmers and community members support a local food economy with their dedicated efforts of promoting local food growth and consumption. They frequently collaborate on multiple levels to strengthen and unite these efforts. Through applying strategies from organizations with similar goals, and learning from their New England counterparts, Spannocchia has the opportunity to help build a movement that can bring the modern community together with local farming.

“The key to preserving this place” Randall told

me,“was not the architecture but the

landscape. And the only way to preserve the

landscape was to return to farming.”

- Ann Hood


appendix

Surveys of local farmers can serve as an invaluable tool for gathering information about the current food system. Below is an example of a survey conducted with a farmer from the study area.

1. Is farming your primary profession? If not, please specify what other work you do (including b&b or agriturismo).Farming and B&B

2. How long have you been farming here? Since 1994

3.Whatsizeisyourfarm?46 hectares

4.Whatproductsdoyougrowand/orproduce?Ifmorethanonecrop/product,please specify the crops and the amount of land dedicated to each.Extra-V olive oil: 4.5 haFruit (apricots, plums, pears, apples, peaches, cherries, figs, nuts and Sharon fruit) 0.3 haSummer-Autumn-Winter vegetables: 2 haWine grapes: 1.5 haCereals, legumes: 7.5 ha

5. Do you grow the food that you and your family consumes? If you buy food, where do you shop (eg, farmers’ market, super-market, etc.)?Home-grown or mercatale produce

6.Whodoyousellyourproductsto?Wholesalers, restaurants, direct sales

7.Whatvaluedoyoufeellocalfarminghas?Currently, the agrarian economy is overloaded with administration and overheads, but remains poorly paid.

8.Whatdoyoufeelisthebiggestobstacletolocalfarming?The cost of raw materials and the lack of demand for organic produce

9.Whatisthebestopportunityinfarmingcurrently?The possibility of ‘associationism’ to guarantee better product placement for small farmer’s produce.

Survey: Local farmer from study area


references

Bonnaci, Patrizia et al. 5° Censimento Generale dell’Agricoltura - Anno 2000: Dati definitivi a livello comunale. Sistema Statistico Nazionale: Siena, 2003. Buonconvento: Museo Della Mezzadria Senese. Buonconvento: Museo Della Mezzadria Senese April 2008. Book.

Cai, Mattia, Roberto Ferrise, Marco Moriondo, and Paulo A.L.D. Nunes. “Climate and Tourism in Tuscany: Responsiveness of Tourist Inflows to Climate Variation.” 21 June 2010. Web. Accessed 23 March 2011. <http://www.ucl.ac.uk/bioecon/12th_2010/Cai.pdf> CISA (Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture) “Local Hero Program.” CISA 2010. Web. Accessed 23 March 2011. <http://www.buylocalfood.org/page.php?id=15>

Costantini, Edoardo A.C. and Roberto Barbetti. “Environmental and Visual Impact Analysis of Viticulture and Olive Tree Cultivation in the Province of Siena (Italy).”European Journal of Agronomy v.28. 2008.

“The History of Agriculture.” English Articles 23 May 2010. Web. Accessed 23 March 2011. <http://www.englisharticles.info/2010/05/23/the-history-of-agriculture/>

Hood, Ann. “The Tuscan Cure.” Bon Appetit (February 2008).

Moretti, Italo. “The History of the Chianti.” ChiantiStorico Web. 23 March 2011. <http://www.chiantistorico.com/en/history/>

Nickerson, Virginia. Understanding Vermont’s Local Food Landscape: An Inventory and Assessment of Recent Local Food Initiatives Vermont Sustainable Agriculture Council (SAC). 2008. <http://nofavt.org/assets/files/pdf/Nickerson%20Final%20SAC%20Report%2012_15_08.pdf>

OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development). “Territorial Reviews: Siena, Italy.” 2002.

Schwartz, James H. “Gilded Age Glory.” Preservation September/October 2010.

Spannnocchia Foundation

“Sustainable Agriculture.” Spannocchia Foundation. 2007. Web. Accessed 23 March 2011. <http://www.spannocchia.org/castello/sustainable-agriculture.cfm>

“Spannocchia Symposium: Food, Landscape, and Community in Tuscany and New England.” Spannocchia Foundation. 2007. Web. Accessed 23 March 2011. <http://www.spannocchia.org/symposium/summary.cfm>

“Tenuta di Spannocchia.” Spannocchia Foundation. 2007. Web. Accessed 23 March 2011. <http://www.spannocchia.org/downloads/2008SFeMediaKit.pdf >

Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund. Farm to Plate Strategic Plan: A 10-Year Strategic Plan for Vermont’s Food System 2011.

Personal Communication: Battaglino, Mariateresa. Erbandando Personal Interview. Jan. 2011. Battino, Andrea. Comune di Bagnaia Personal Interview. Jan. 2011. Bechi, Marco. Slow Food Siena Personal Interview. Jan. 2011. Bucelli, Paulo and team. Province of Siena Personal Interview. Jan. 2011. Casarin, Daniela. Spannocchia Foundation, Erbandando Personal Interview. Jan.-Mar. 2011. Cinelli, Erin. Spannocchia Foundation Personal Interview. Jan.-Mar. 2011. Coleman, Kelly. CISA Personal Interview. Feb. 2011. Donahue, Brian. Spannocchia Foundation Personal Interview. 21 Feb. 2011. Galli, Berenice. Personal Interview. Jan. 2011. O’Keefe, John. Spannocchia Foundation Personal Interview. Jan.-Mar. 2011. Phelan, Katie. Spannocchia Foundation Personal Interview. Jan. 2011. Stratton, Randall. Spannocchia Foundation Personal Interview. Jan. 2011.

Prepared for Randall Stratton and John O’Keefe of The Spannocchia Foundation, Tuscany, Italy

Héloïse Chandless, Kate Cholakis, Erin HepfnerConway School of Landscape Design

March 2011

Homegrown In Tuscany

A Food System Study for the Val di Merse, Tuscany

The Conway School of Landscape Design is the only institution of its kind in North America. Its focus is sustainable landscape planning and design. Each year, through its accredited, ten-month graduate program just eighteen to nineteen students from diverse backgrounds are immersed in a range of applied landscape studies, ranging in scale from residences to regions. Graduates go on to play signifi cant professional roles in various aspects of landscape planning and design. www.csld.edu

Are rural regions capable of feeding their populations?



Around the world farmers, communities, and governments are asking themselves these questions. Spannocchia, an organic farm and medieval estate in Tuscany, has begun to connect these groups, fostering a global dialogue about local, sustainable agriculture.

Spannocchia is searching for ways that it can connect to its local community through integration with the regional food system. This food system study explores the possibility of the Val di Merse region generating a local food economy, and how Spannocchia can play a powerful role in this large-scale effort.


Cover Image Source: Spannocchia, Photographer: Paul Avis

homegrown in tuscany

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