Fajã dos Padres
Fajã dos Padres is a secluded organic farm, beach and restaurant on Madeira's south coast, reached by cable car down a 300-metre cliff or by…
Agroecology
Agroecology works with the farm as an ecosystem: crop diversity, living soil and local knowledge. In Portugal it runs from family farms like Vale da Sarvinda to larger estates such as Herdade Monte Silveira. Buy direct, volunteer at harvest or learn from the people growing the food.
Projects in this focus
Agroecology in Portugal
Agroecology treats a farm as an ecosystem rather than a production line: diverse crops, living soil, water kept on the land and knowledge that comes from the place itself. In Portugal it runs from family smallholdings to estates of several hundred hectares.
Herdade Monte Silveira farms around 700 hectares in Beira Baixa. Vale da Sarvinda is a family farm. Both sell direct, and the project pages show where direct sales are available.
Buying direct, volunteering at harvest, or taking a course are the three usual ways in, and each project page says which of them apply. Ask the farmer how they grow; that conversation tells you more than any label. See also the regenerative agriculture and permaculture focuses. Dated activities from these projects are listed in our events calendar.