From Matteo’s micro-dairy that conquers the VIP beaches at Neri and Chiara’s agri-pub, from Francesca’s life change to the other Matteo, the agri-influencer of Chianti, up to the garden-laboratories with the project of the De Franceschi Pacinotti Institute of Pistoia. What do they all have in common? The Oscar Green awards by Giovani Coldiretti.
They are the winners of the regional edition of the awards given to entrepreneurs under 40 who have enhanced, exalted, and updated agriculture. The awards were presented on the stage of “The Village in Tuscany,” the event promoted by Coldiretti Firenze Prato, Coldiretti Toscana, and Giovani Impresa Coldiretti held Thursday evening at Piazzale Michelangelo. The awards were presented by the national delegate of Giovani Impresa Coldiretti, Enrico Parisi, by the mayor of Florence, Sara Funaro, by the councilor for commerce of the Municipality of Florence, by the president of the regional council, Stefania Saccardi, by the undersecretary to the Presidency of the Regional Council, Bernard Dika, and by the regional councilor, Chiara La Porta.
The awards ceremony was coordinated by the regional delegate of the youth movement, Francesco Panzacchi, and by the regional secretary, Eleonora Tinarelli.
The Oscar Stories
Campagna Amica Award Matteo Pennacchi Il Garfagnino – Massa Carrara
The short supply chain can be found under the umbrellas of the VIP Versilia. It is the image that perfectly conveys the success of the cheeses and dairy products of Il Garfagnino: ricottas, yogurts, panna cottas, forms and small forms of fresh and aged primo sale, made with milk milked and processed in a closed circuit, end up on the tables of the beach resorts and the trendiest restaurants in Versilia frequented by international tourism. But to get here, the road was uphill and long… nine years. Actually, almost 60. That is the endless amount of time that has passed since the last farmer decided to build a stable in the municipality of Montignoso. The municipal archives testify to this! A lifetime later, it is “Il Garfagnino” Matteo Pennacchi, 29 years old, a first-generation farmer, who revived livestock farming in this small town overlooking the sea between the Apuan coast, the historic Versilia of Forte dei Marmi and Pietrasanta. The name of his company, Il Garfagnino, is a tribute to the origins of his grandparents born in Pieve a Fosciana, in Garfagnana, although Matteo was raised just steps from where he decided to start his business. After graduating in agriculture in Soliera, Lunigiana, and many, too many, bureaucratic vicissitudes, he managed to create a small jewel of the short supply chain: stable, milking, dairy, and sales point. All within a few meters. The milk milked thanks to a state-of-the-art mechanized system arrives without curves in the dairy tanks for processing. The cows, about twenty of Brown, Pezzata, and Red breeds, graze around the dairy. Matteo is the one who takes care of milk processing and manages relationships with customers and suppliers. His company symbolically collects the legacy of many farmers and breeders who, before him, populated one of the most important agricultural areas between Massa and Montignoso for vegetable production and livestock farming, which unfortunately did not see generational turnover materialize. Matteo’s company is a perfect example of a successful and innovative short supply chain but also of pride, identity, and entrepreneurial skills. His company produces very high-quality products, has created new jobs, and has become a point of reference for the local community that, thanks to Matteo, remembered its rural origins.
Growing Together Valentina Franci Casa Boscaglia – Follonica
It was the pandemic that put her back on the road home. Valentina Franci is a third-generation agricultural entrepreneur in the municipality of Follonica. A degree enriched by a prestigious master’s in tourism marketing in Milan and a lot of experience in public relations and event organization. A background that before her “life change” she had only made available to others. Then the lockdown came to freeze everything. It was at that moment that Valentina took refuge in the family fields. “I still remember those endless days. I was sitting on the grass with the PC on my lap and silence around. I was working remotely like many of us at that time. Covid changed my perspective. I don’t know if I would have been able to change my life without that shock.” Valentina left the office and her home in Milan and settled in the family farmhouse just steps from the sea in Follonica. Three hectares to rewrite. It is lavender that inspires her. She cultivates twenty thousand plants that she initially transforms into essences and then into agricultural gin. A novelty in the field of mixology. To the transformation, she adds experientiality by organizing sensory paths and walks among the blooming lavender. The last piece of this journey is represented by the opening of the agriristoro and picnic area directly among the rows, where the beauty of the landscape blends with the authentic flavors of the land. “Today I no longer organize just events, but I offer people the chance to stop and be moved. We offer an experience. That PC that was once my only window to the world is now just the tool to tell a reality made of land, scents, and slow rhythms.” For the first time, Valentina knows exactly where she wants to go: “I want to honor my parents’ work by creating a place where time no longer runs but dances to the rhythm of the wind among the lavender.”
Read more In thirty for the Executive Master in Port Terminal Management
Digital and Sustainable Enterprise Podere Fatucchio Società Agricola Arezzo
Organic beer, zero km, and sustainability end up on the counter of the new point of reference for conviviality in the heart of Casentino. It is the image that perfectly conveys the success of hops and brewing products of Fatucchio’s Agripub: craft beers, traditional dishes reinterpreted with zero km ingredients, obtained from raw materials cultivated and processed in a short supply chain, which land on the tables of a welcoming place frequented by residents and lovers of slow tourism. The road started uphill when the surrounding lands were only weeds and brambles, as testified by the old rural boundaries, Neri Garigliani and Chiara Anzalone went straight towards their goal and today are young first-generation farmers and entrepreneurs, reviving the rural economy in this picturesque corner of Casentino, in Rimbocchi. Before embarking on this adventure, Chiara attended university while Neri worked as a gardener, a background of different experiences that today converge in the meticulous care of their land. The name of their agripub and company is a tribute to the passion and deep connection with the territory where they grew up and where they chose to bet on the future. After the organic conversion of the fields and many challenges to restructure the spaces, they managed to create a small jewel of circular economy from barley cultivation, to agricultural production, to the brewery and refreshment point. All integrated into a single sustainable project. The organically grown barley – using beer varieties such as SY Stanza and RGT Planet – goes directly into the adjacent brewery vats for processing. If last year the cultivation extended over about 2 hectares, this year the area has increased to at least 4 hectares, thus following the expected production increase of the brewery. The lush fields surround the structure, witnesses of a rediscovered ecosystem. Neri and Chiara take care of every phase, from sowing to tapping, enhancing direct contact with customers and suppliers. Their activity symbolically collects the legacy of many farmers and breeders who, before them, populated one of the greenest valleys in Tuscany, where generational turnover had stopped. Neri and Chiara’s company is a perfect example of a very short supply chain of success and innovation, pride, identity, and entrepreneurial skills. Their reality produces excellences of very high quality, has created new jobs, and is becoming a point of reference for the local community that, thanks to them, has rediscovered the taste and pride of its origins.
Special Award Agri-influencer Matteo Luncio Tenuta Tigliano SS Florence
Matteo is the superhero of Chianti. His Ferrari red work suit that he sports in every social video makes him look like one of those superhuman Marvel characters or one of the most famous characters in the gaming world. However, unlike those who have flying and jumping abilities, he has his feet firmly planted on the ground. Actually, among the vineyards. His story is one of small steps, patience, and passion that began when he was 19 years old and had a small patch of land. Today that patch has grown to 74 hectares with vineyards scattered between Pisa and Florence. On Instagram, Matteo gives advice on which wine to bring to friends’ homes or which to prefer during the holidays, tells about the work in the cellar, shows his machinery, and naturally presents his wines, the latest vintages, and tastings in the cellar. “The red suit? I would even go to bed in it. I don’t wear it only in videos.” – Matteo laughs, recognizing the usefulness of social media. – “Creating content for Instagram is becoming an important part of the life of a small company like mine. It is a fun and demanding activity that allows me to make known the grape varieties I cultivate and my wines. What I try to convey with my videos is authenticity.”
Special Award Schools of today, farmers of tomorrow Professional Institute “De Franceschi – Pacinotti” Pistoia
Planting Health in schools is a project that brings green culture into schools and transforms school gardens into places of learning, meeting, and responsibility. Born within the Network of Schools that Promote Health, the project is the result of collaboration between the Regional School Office, the territorial area of Prato and Pistoia, Coldiretti Women Pistoia, the De Franceschi-Pacinotti Agricultural Professional Institute of Pistoia, and the involved kindergartens and primary schools. The value of the initiative lies primarily in its ability to connect different generations and skills. The students of the Agricultural Institute have become tutors for the children, accompanying them in the activities of planting trees and teaching them the techniques to take care of them. A concrete experience in which the students were able to make their knowledge available and, at the same time, assume a role of responsibility towards the younger ones. This is where the deeper meaning of “Schools of today, farmers of tomorrow” is born: the Agricultural students are not only recipients of professional training but protagonists of a path in which they transmit what they have learned and become, already today, ambassadors of the agricultural culture of the territory. The children, in turn, discover through direct experience the value of the land, care, and the rhythms of nature. Coldiretti Women Pistoia contributed to the project by providing, through two farms run by women, the plants destined for the school gardens and supporting the schools in the activities. Olive trees, citrus fruits, and other essences have thus found a place in the school spaces, becoming living presences to observe, care for, and grow over time. The project therefore combines environmental education, knowledge of the territory, correct lifestyles, and enhancement of agriculture, through a simple but effective method: learning by doing and taking care together of something that will grow over time. Planting a tree at school does not only mean planting a plant: it means sowing knowledge, responsibility, and a new generation of citizens closer to the land. And, for the Agricultural students, it means starting today to be the farmers of tomorrow.
Read more Trains in Tuscany, 50% discount on subscriptions in October: how to get it