When he is working in his orchards, Martin Astfäller has an amazing view of the many castles in the village of Laces. He inherited the farm which is a family business in the truest sense of the term, because Martin's favourite helping hands are those of his father and wife. He converted to organic farming in 1998. He first learnt about organics at the South Tyrol technical college for fruit production, viticulture and horticulture in Laimburg. "I invest in healthy, natural products. They not only help me, but they are good for our environment in Val Venosta and for everyone who eats my apples." For him, organics stands for sustainability, environmental logic and a way of farming which aims to build a better future. Perhaps that is why Martin gets so enthusiastic about the autumn. That is when he can harvest what he has worked on for the whole year. The first variety to be harvested is Gala, and when he finally takes a bite out of one it all comes flooding back to him: this work really does make life sweet.