A new reference is making its way into the world of Sicilian pistachios: the organic PDO Raffadali pistachio. This is thanks to Luigi Brucculeri, a pistachio producer from Castrofilippo, in the province of Agrigento, whose company incorporates a historic pistachio grove (because it is among the first to have been created with rational sixth order).
Falling within the Pistachio di Raffadali DOP production area, the Brucculeri Luigi farm was also among the first to adhere to the production regulations of the protection consortium and, as of this year, has completed the process of converting to organic.
Today, therefore, the Brucculeri company is one of the first to be able to commercialize the organic PDO Raffadali pistachio, with CSQA certification for both the organic and the PDO.
In the plant of the company there are secular trees with irregular layout. But most of them, as mentioned, have a regular sixth grade and are around 30 years old, for which mechanical harvesting has also been implemented.
"As required by the production regulations, the rootstock is the terebinth - says Brucculeri - and the Neapolitan variety, also known as white or local, was grafted onto this. The emerald green color of this pistachio, its elongated shape and the sweet and aromatic taste make it unmistakable, consecrating the PDO Raffadali pistachio as one of the leading products of worldwide pistachio cultivation".
The producer had to face several difficulties this year, because "the season that goes from flowering to fruit setting and the growth of new fruit was characterized by many rainfalls that were abundant in terms of frequency and intensity . This resulted in a high percentage of relative humidity throughout the period, facilitating the development of numerous physiopathies that affected both the leaves and the young fruit, with the consequence that part of the production was lost".
"Even if we suffered losses this year, we absolutely do not lose heart, so much so that we are carrying out various production protocols, thanks to which we hope to limit the damage in future years. In any case, pistachios are produced every year in our company, unlike in other production areas, thanks to winter pruning , which is carried out precisely every year, trying to mitigate the alternation of production that is typical of the species.
The remains of the pruning are burned in situ, also to reduce the load of harmful insects which would restart the infestation the following year. To combat these insects using methods that respect the environment and are in keeping with the organic specification, in addition to lowering the initial population , the development of the larvae is monitored, in order to carry out targeted interventions aimed at reducing treatments, improving their effectiveness".
This year, the harvest will presumably begin at the end of August, and a production of about 15 tons of pistachios is estimated, which will be marketed in the shell but also shelled in packages approved by the protection consortium and with the double brand of organic and DOP certifications. (Source: https://www.freshplaza.it/ )
The "Pistachio di Raffadali DOP" becomes BIO