Ruggiero – Family-Run Organic Farm in Apulia

We are a family-run farm. With a love for the land, a spirit of hard work and a desire to grow, we want to share with you the best of what we know how to do.

Our farm is located in Castellana Grotte, with plots also scattered across the areas of Alberobello and Conversano. This is the limestone plateau of the land of trulli and caves: partly hilly countryside at 300 metres above sea level, with loose, calcareous and particularly sunny soils.

Our story begins with our great-grandparents, who worked tirelessly and devotedly to cultivate olive groves in the countryside of Castellana Grotte and Monopoli. It is a story that dates back to the early twentieth century, and then as now, everything begins and grows from the Land.

In our fields you will find mostly centuries-old olive trees alongside younger almond and cherry trees. Protecting these majestic olive trees, a heritage our ancestors have lent to us, is essential to us. More recently, we have invested in young specialised cherry and almond orchards on fields that had previously been left fallow or used for forage crops. Our olive trees produce a unique extra virgin olive oil with distinctive aromatic qualities, made from ancient local varieties such as Cima di Mola, Simona and Oliastra, which, together with the more recent Picholine and Cima di Melfi, give a medium-fruity, well-balanced oil.

To respect biodiversity and improve our fruit yields, we keep permanent hives of Apis mellifera ligustica bees on the farm. In good years, with abundant blossoms, they produce cherry blossom and wildflower honey.

In 2015, the idea was born to showcase our products under the Ruggiero brand, the family name that binds us to this land.

Our mission is to offer wholesome food products at a fair price for consumers, while respecting the land where they are grown and the people who work with us.

A. Ruggiero