Gozo traditions from farm to plate
Gozo’s rich traditions are a breeding farm for agrotourismo on the islands. RACHEL ZAMMIT CUTAJAR talks to Joseph Spiteri at Ta’ Mena about how they have transformed a traditional farm, into one where locals and tourists alike can get and insight into not only traditional farming methods but also cooking like grandma used to
Rachel Zammit Cutajar
When I meet Joseph Spiteri, I’m expecting to meet a Gozitan farmer, knowledgeable about what grows when, though cloistered in his little part of the world. However when I met him, with his sparkling green eyes and numerous conspiracy theories, I immediately understand there is more to this man than meets the eye.
He has worked tirelessly for his entire lifetime to try to preserve what is left of Gozo tradition – right from what he grows on the farm to his mother’s recipes.
Joseph talks about how the farm was founded by his grandfather in 1936, when after being let go by Henry Ford as a result of The Great Depression, he moved back to Gozo from the United States and bought two hectares of land which he turned into a fruit garden. “My grandfather used to grow fruit we no longer find anymore. He had cherry trees and species of apricots we no longer find in Malta. Without conscious effort to preserve Malta’s indigenous species we run the risk of losing many of the crops of our forefathers and things we take for granted, like Maltese citrus, will also become threatened” he said.
Farming, Joseph said, is not something young people want to do and the farmers that remain are planting wheat for animal fodder rather crops for human consumption, turning the arable lands around the estate into dry, arid areas and restricting the amount of local produce for sale on the market.
At Ta’ Mena, Joseph is trying to bring back a link to the earth, adding an agrotourismo quality to his crops. “We organise tours around the estate where people can see what goes into growing the food that they eat. We have some incredible products in Malta, like olive oil and wines, yet we import large quantities of substandard products.”
By this he is not trying to say that Maltese wines are better than all Italian wines, for example, however, there are a number of labels coming from Italy (or other countries) that use sugar and other additives to produce a consistent wine, year in, year out, which is inferior to some wines produced locally. Olive oils display a similar trend. Most supermarket-brand olive oils boast an acidity level of less than 1%, while Maltese olive oil contains less than 0.08% making for a far superior olive oil.
“Our tours are educational and we offer insights into farming methods and comparisons to what is on the market, while making this experience an enjoyable one,” he said. And by enjoyable he means tastings of wine, olive oil and foods that they produce, from fruits, wines and cheeses to their one-of-a-kind sundried tomato paste.
For larger groups they organise pizza nights using an old, stone, wood-fired oven in keeping with traditions as well as the traditional majjalata with free-flowing wine to get everyone in the mood for a fun local night out. “Our aim is to go back to our grassroots and keep traditions alive. We cook like our grandmothers used to cook using local ingredients fresh from the farm.”
