Blood red and extremely delicious

If you take a stroll with Friedrich across his farm near Gibraleón today, the first thing you’ll notice is the noise: a literal wall of birdsong. But behind this idyllic scene lies a radical choice made years ago—one that flew right in the face of convention. Today, having held Demeter certification since 1994, he’s living proof that his “madness” was the only logical response to the crisis facing our soil.Forty years ago, Friedrich fell in love with Finca Jelanisol-Montebello during a trip to Spain. At the time, he was working as a middleman for conventional fruit and veg. Two things happened back then that made him stop and think: A friend gave him a book on permaculture by Bill Mollison, which sparked an idea. While visiting a farm in Italy, he found himself desperately digging for earthworms. When the farmer told him there weren’t any “because you don’t need them,” Friedrich began to question everything. A Holistic Vision: Everything is ConnectedFor Friedrich, farming isn’t an isolated job; it’s part of a much bigger picture. He holds a deeply philosophical, holistic view of the world where everything—from soil microbes to the end consumer—is linked. He doesn’t see his farm as just a production site, but as a living organism where people and nature live in harmony. In his eyes, a peaceful society can only exist if we produce in tune with nature. If we get it right, there’s enough for everyone—we just can’t afford to destroy the foundations.One of the biggest things driving Friedrich is a deep-seated worry about the state of the modern diet. He explains that much of the food we eat today is “empty.” By this, he means conventional produce that, thanks to pesticides and long storage times, has lost any real nutritional value. He lives by the rule: Healthy Soil = Healthy People. Only living, regenerated soil can produce fruit that actually nourishes the body.One of the first things Friedrich did was build a large pond—not for irrigation, but purely for the birds, frogs, ducks, and fish. It also acts as drainage during heavy rain. They produce their own organic fertiliser using microorganisms, supplying the trees with a steady stream of minerals through a drip irrigation system.

We visited Antonio from Sicilian Passion in Sicily. In a region traditionally known for its citrus fruits, Antonio decided to take a different path several years ago: he grows passion fruit (and even papayas!).A crucial part of our collaboration is precisely determining the harvest time. Our teams conduct sugar measurements directly in the field. A refractometer is used to determine the Brix value, ensuring that the fruits have reached the required physiological maturity and full aromatic profile. Harvesting only begins once these thresholds are met. In the video below, you can see our colleague Angelo taking these measurements. It’s a lot of fun, because you’re literally looking into the future.Ripening Characteristics and EtymologyAn important quality characteristic of passion fruit is the texture of its skin. Unlike many fruits, here’s the rule: the more pronounced the wrinkling of the fruit, the higher the sugar content. Due to slight evaporation during the ripening process, the fruit sugar concentrates inside, while the acidity subtly decreases. There are two harvests per year – one in the winter months and one in the summer months. Especially in summer, the fruits are “wrinklier” because the liquid evaporates faster due to the heat.Did you know that the name “passion fruit” is derived from Christian iconography? Spanish missionaries in the 16th century interpreted the complex flower structure as symbols of the Passion of Christ. The filaments of the flower were associated with the crown of thorns, the three stigmas with the nails of the cross, and the five stamens with the wounds. In the gallery, you’ll find a picture where this is very clearly visible.

We Weren’t Prepared for This – Or Were We?It has been raining for several weeks in Spain. This week, however, a state of disaster was declared in several regions, especially in Andalusia. Our farmers sent us the pictures attached below – and our team was speechless for several minutes. We have reported on heavy rainfall many times before, but this year the extent is particularly great. The good news is: all farmers are doing well! Persistent low-pressure weather systems brought intense rainfall, hurricane-force gusts of wind, and rivers overflowing their banks. Our farmers from the Málaga region are reporting fallen trees and muddy roads, making access almost impossible. Unfortunately, some farmers have already informed us that they will likely suffer crop losses as fruits have been damaged. The lesser evil is probably the delays in delivery – it hasn’t stopped raining, which means the fruits are too wet to be shipped; they would mould in their boxes. Haven’t We Already Found the Solution?I’m speaking with Maikel from Finca Habitat, located in a small town between Jaén and Granada – one of the most severely affected areas. He sends me a video, which you can find below – it shows his neighbors’ flooded olive groves and the raging river. In the next video, he’s in his own fields, showing how much rain has fallen. He pours it onto his trees, which he protects from drying out and simultaneously fertilizes with his sheep’s wool during hot months. “For me, the rain is an absolute joy. It’s wonderful!” says the farmer. In his fields – not even a puddle. “This is a sign that we are doing everything right, Magdalena,” he explains. Maikel decided to farm regeneratively over a decade ago. In one of Spain’s driest regions, he manages to avoid irrigating his olive trees through his practices.How Does That Work? Through a ground cover that acts like a sponge, soaking up all the water and allowing it to seep into deeper soil layers. Not a single drop of water is lost because the root system has such a high capacity to absorb water that it neither drains away nor accumulates. What if we could make farms so resilient that they emerge encouraged from extreme weather events? Would regenerative agriculture be the solution we’ve been looking for? These are the questions I ask myself when I see the pictures and videos that offer such a different perspective on the situation. The weather forecast continues to show rain for the next few days, and we, along with the farmers, reassess the situation daily – safety comes first, and we will probably have to be patient a little longer until the sun comes out again.