My name is Chema Cervera. All my ancestors, both on my father's and on my mother's side, worked in agriculture, so I have vivid memories of spending weekends and school holidays in the country with my family. Farming has always been part of me and another way of life, even though it was a hard job. However, when I used to look down onto the vineyard, the olive trees and the carobs that we grew, I knew that this connection would never go away. And I was right. When I was young, I was a bit restless and adventurous, and I wasn't afraid of anything. I decided to discover other professions, as I'm a natural-born entrepreneur. Among other things, I spent several years in the sales side of the wine industry. That was until 2012, when I already had the idea of an agricultural project going around in my head and I got the chance to buy this farm. It used to be known as La Finca del Alemán, named after a German man who bought a typical Valencian farmhouse next to some plots of land. He then bought some more adjoining plots, which were lumped together onto the original farm. And that's how I found the farm: one plot here, another there, oranges of one variety on a certain plot, yet a different variety and maturity of oranges on another. What's more, there were irrigation channels running everywhere, which were used to flood-irrigate the fields. Given this situation, I decided to remove all the orange trees and channels to unify the farm and make it easier to work with machinery and drip irrigation. In other words, I modernised the farm in a quest for greater efficiency and respect for the environment. I wanted to carry out this transformation to my liking, so I bought a second-hand backhoe. Even though I had no idea about how it worked, I enthusiastically learned everything over time by testing out the different levers and functions. When I finished the transformation, I changed the construction machinery for a farm tractor and implements. Before planting the pomegranate trees and while they were still small, I grew crops such as artichokes, watermelons and pumpkins. Later on, I planted guavas and I recently expanded the farm with other nearby plots. Now it's time to refurbish the house, adapting it for the production of my organic pomegranate juice and guava preserves, as well as for any visitors. I think that the CrowdFarming project is fabulous because it fits in perfectly with my working and farming philosophy. It gives me the chance to directly reach out to people who know how to value and appreciate the products that my team and I at 'Finca Rubí. La Imperfecta' grow with such hard work and passion.

Finca Isla Rubí is located in the province of Valencia between the towns of Gandía and Cullera, 800 metres from the Mediterranean Sea and at an altitude of 3 metres. Since 2012, I've had the privilege of looking after the farm. Its name comes from when it was first planted with Wonderful and Mollar pomegranates. Locals and passers-by were amazed at the 'island' formed by a pomegranate farm with its distinctive red fruits among a sea of orange, mandarin and grapefruit blossom. The farm has unique characteristics such as its soil, which is very sandy and requires more frequent but less abundant drip irrigation, because the sand retains little water. The irrigation on our farm varies from year to year, normally starting on a daily basis from June onwards, with two short irrigation procedures, one in the morning and one at night, with water from the farm's well. Our pomegranates consume approximately 600 litres of water per year, although this depends on the conditions each year. For most of the year, we let the grass grow on our farm, until we mow it with a tractor or cut it manually in the hot months, leaving it on the ground to protect the soil from the sun and prevent the evaporation of irrigation water. The climate is temperate for most of the year, with a hot summer (but less hot than inland regions thanks to the sea breeze). Our farm is located 800 metres from the Mediterranean Sea, between Cullera and Gandía. We're currently refurbishing the facilities of the farm, both for producing juice and for welcoming visitors. When you come to visit your tree, we'll greet you with a glass of healthy 'La Imperfecta' pomegranate juice to make you instantly feel at home. Dew remains on the ground until late in the morning on many spring and summer days. There are no major changes in temperature between night and day, which makes it difficult for our pomegranates to take on a very intense colour. What's more, the skin is a little bit thinner, which makes it more prone to cracking, while the friction of the fruit and the branches leaves marks on the pomegranates. This purely aesthetic aspect has held my fruit back from entering the traditional markets. However, it’s very flavoursome, smooth and juicy, so if you don't buy fruit purely for appearance, I'm sure you're going to love it! In order to minimise food waste, I decided to create a natural pomegranate juice, taking advantage of all the fruit that can't be marketed. The Wonderful variety has structure, body and a subtle bitterness, while the Mollar variety ('La Imperfecta') has sweetness, finesse and silkiness. Once the juice production process is over, the by-products (especially the skins) are mixed with the pruning remains and manure to make our own compost, meaning that we close the entire circle. On the farm, I currently have the invaluable help of my wife and two other men, apart from myself. Of course, at specific times such as harvesting, I expand the workforce by contracting temporary workers. It was my decision for the wages to be above the current wages in farming. Thanks to our hard work, I hope that our team will be able to grow in the next few years. Due to the influence of the workers and partners, some from Cuba, I recently incorporated an organic guava plantation into the farm, which this year has started to bear fruit (less than 1,000 kg). In the next few years, production will increase to 40,000 kg. Now you have another reason and another excuse to visit us and discover the Mediterranean guava, or 'Amara' as I've christened it.