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Freshly harvested
The lovely retail shops of the cooperatives in the Val Venosta apple paradise
Time to get to know our products
Due to their modest size they seem to be tiny side wings of the huge cooperatives that host them. Small in size, but simply great. These are the five retail shops of the cooperatives in Naturno, Castelbello, Laces, Silandro and Oris that are very much liked by both local inhabitants and tourists. The shopping experience in these shops is really special, as they distinguish themselves by their genuineness and by focusing on what is important, without any unnecessary frills. Just as Val Venosta’s 1,700 farmer families who cultivate the freshly harvested apples, apricots, cherries, pears, strawberries and raspberries that are daily delivered to these shops.
At the heart of Val Venosta’s alpine mountain world, all kinds of colorful apple varieties – and, above all, Golden Delicious – have called the shots for generations. The apple is almost a part of the DNA of this splendid valley. It has found its home in Europe’s highest homogenous apple producing area. Many producers, however, also take advantage of the special climate of this sunny valley characterized by low precipitation and grow vegetables.
„In addition to the best apples from the surrounding apple orchards, we also offer potatoes, cauliflower and other vegetables. Because our producers are very creative and know well what Val Venosta’s fertile soils are able to give them,“ explains Evi of the retail shop in Castelbello. In these retail shops, you can even smell that the products all come from the immediate surroundings. As if the fruits were still hanging on the trees. Their fresh aroma is still in the air, because everything here is freshly harvested.
„Val Venosta’s famous wind may now and then take up the scent of apples high above in the clouds and blow this essence of wellbeing to other South Tyrolean valleys as well,” says Margit of the shop in Laces, full of pride.
And she’s absolutely right. When entering these shops, you can perceive it immediately with all your senses: There is this predominating freshness of apples that have just been taken out of the cold storage cells. It leaves a lasting impression that persists even after leaving the shop. It’s a fruity freshness refined with many different sweet and earthy scents that spark your imagination. You feel as if you were in the middle of an apple orchard or in a vegetable field. Fascinating! Especially if you then get precious information from our diligent and nice shop assistants. A real pleasure!
At the heart of Val Venosta’s alpine mountain world, all kinds of colorful apple varieties – and, above all, Golden Delicious – have called the shots for generations. The apple is almost a part of the DNA of this splendid valley. It has found its home in Europe’s highest homogenous apple producing area. Many producers, however, also take advantage of the special climate of this sunny valley characterized by low precipitation and grow vegetables.
„In addition to the best apples from the surrounding apple orchards, we also offer potatoes, cauliflower and other vegetables. Because our producers are very creative and know well what Val Venosta’s fertile soils are able to give them,“ explains Evi of the retail shop in Castelbello. In these retail shops, you can even smell that the products all come from the immediate surroundings. As if the fruits were still hanging on the trees. Their fresh aroma is still in the air, because everything here is freshly harvested.
„Val Venosta’s famous wind may now and then take up the scent of apples high above in the clouds and blow this essence of wellbeing to other South Tyrolean valleys as well,” says Margit of the shop in Laces, full of pride.
And she’s absolutely right. When entering these shops, you can perceive it immediately with all your senses: There is this predominating freshness of apples that have just been taken out of the cold storage cells. It leaves a lasting impression that persists even after leaving the shop. It’s a fruity freshness refined with many different sweet and earthy scents that spark your imagination. You feel as if you were in the middle of an apple orchard or in a vegetable field. Fascinating! Especially if you then get precious information from our diligent and nice shop assistants. A real pleasure!
„Our clients are not only our own members who already know their products perfectly well. Many of our regular customers are local clients but also numerous tourists who spend their holidays in the Val Venosta apple paradise every year. They are especially thirsty for knowledge,“ says Monika of the shop in Naturno.
The shop assistants’ expert knowledge about quality, harvest period and characteristics of the different varieties provide important information to the visitors and make their shopping experience very emotional. It’s a good feeling to shop at the source, to know where your products come from, which is probably the most important information.
„In the end, the packaging with the ladybirds is more than just a publicity stunt. Our producers both mentally and physically dedicate a lot of time to the close collaboration with useful insects every day. So our ladybirds stand for all these sustainable insects,“ says Carmen in Oris.
Only a very small fraction of Val Venosta’s apple harvest is sold in these shops, of course. When you compare it with the quantities that daily leave Val Venosta’s cooperatives by truck towards Italy and numerous countries abroad, it is very tiny. But these shops are ambassadors of freshness and pulsate with the same vitality of splendid fruit and vegetable departments of supermarkets as they are within easy reach. With the difference, however, that producers often mingle with the customers and become customers themselves. The result is a very strong feeling of authenticity. Moreover, the shop assistants between Naturno and Oris pleasantly chat with their regular customers and have fun at work, which is equally authentic. Thanks to their natural charm they turn the simple shops into real oases of wellbeing. Besides, the retail shops directly and indirectly tell a lot of exciting stories, as they are fully integrated in the cooperative building.
Just as at the baker’s in the morning when fresh bread is delivered, you can hear all kinds of news regarding new varieties, favorable or unfavorable weather conditions, sophisticated quality and hopeful harvest results here. But you can also get valuable tips about traditional recipes for free that make appetite for more. Because origin counts a lot. Kind regards from Val Venosta’s many farmer families and diligent ladybirds, the lovely symbol of the Val Venosta apple paradise.
The shop assistants’ expert knowledge about quality, harvest period and characteristics of the different varieties provide important information to the visitors and make their shopping experience very emotional. It’s a good feeling to shop at the source, to know where your products come from, which is probably the most important information.
„In the end, the packaging with the ladybirds is more than just a publicity stunt. Our producers both mentally and physically dedicate a lot of time to the close collaboration with useful insects every day. So our ladybirds stand for all these sustainable insects,“ says Carmen in Oris.
Only a very small fraction of Val Venosta’s apple harvest is sold in these shops, of course. When you compare it with the quantities that daily leave Val Venosta’s cooperatives by truck towards Italy and numerous countries abroad, it is very tiny. But these shops are ambassadors of freshness and pulsate with the same vitality of splendid fruit and vegetable departments of supermarkets as they are within easy reach. With the difference, however, that producers often mingle with the customers and become customers themselves. The result is a very strong feeling of authenticity. Moreover, the shop assistants between Naturno and Oris pleasantly chat with their regular customers and have fun at work, which is equally authentic. Thanks to their natural charm they turn the simple shops into real oases of wellbeing. Besides, the retail shops directly and indirectly tell a lot of exciting stories, as they are fully integrated in the cooperative building.
Just as at the baker’s in the morning when fresh bread is delivered, you can hear all kinds of news regarding new varieties, favorable or unfavorable weather conditions, sophisticated quality and hopeful harvest results here. But you can also get valuable tips about traditional recipes for free that make appetite for more. Because origin counts a lot. Kind regards from Val Venosta’s many farmer families and diligent ladybirds, the lovely symbol of the Val Venosta apple paradise.
