BACK TO CASE STUDIESPecore Gialle is a Social farm born in 2020 thanks to the collaboration of varius social cooperatives who work in the same territory. The farm has been identified by the beneficiary of the project along with the association involved as a primary location to develop autonomy, social and work inclusion.
Pecore Gialle is an innovative social farm where people with disadvantages find a place to empower their skills, autonomy and self determination. The social farm gives the opportunity to anyone involved in the project to find the activities that suits them more: work in agriculture, work in the restaurant as waiter or as a chef, etc. are only few fields in which they can be employed. Although the farm is relatively young they have taken part in a national price called Bandira Verde in which they competed for the Agri Welfare price and they have won the competition as the most innovative and inclusive farm in Italy. The award cerimony have taken place in Campidolio at the presence of first citizen of Roma.
- Name and Surname: Elisabetta Giovenali.
- Birth Year: 1974.
- Gender: Female.
- Education: Master Degree in Oriental languages.
- Address/map: Frazione Strettura 76, Spoleto.
- Farm Area (in ha): 26 ha.
- Date of establishment of the social farm: 2020.
- No of workers: 14 on shift and splitted in the different activities ( farming- restaurant ect).
Website and social networks accounts:
http://www.editcooperativa.it/territorio/le-pecore-gialle
https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=le%20pecore%20gialle%20strettura
https://instagram.com/lepecoregialle?utm_medium=copy_link
Farm general description
The Pecore gialle has a farm and an agritourism in which the beneficiaries are actively involved. They work on farm animals and agricultural products ( seasonal vegetables and fruit, oil, transformation of cereal). The agritourists have both a restaurant and overnight stay. They do training to facilitate work inclusion supporting everyone’s self determination.
Services
The Pecore Gialle services are very wide and they are oriented to both the beneficiaries of the project and the territory. The services are: training on the job, permanent lab, restaurant, walking tour and swimming pool, pecore gialle express ( solidary purchase group), recovery of abandoned or underutilized olive grows of small and very small producers.
Activities
Between the various activities the training on the job is one of the most significant for the beneficiaries which is oriented only to them and it is held on farming, animals farm, restaurant, cleaning and maintenance. Each beneficiary is followed by a team and a psychologist. The permanent lab is oriented to both the internal and external beneficiaries of the project and they are based on the encounter with nature and the seasonal cycle of products.
Products
Pecore Galle mainly produces eggs, seasonal vegetables and fruits. They do transformation realising marmelate, sauces, juices and in oil vegetables. Concerning the flour products they make breads, biscuits and fresh pasta. All products can be bought directly in the farm or through “Pecore gialle express” their solidarity purchase group. Many of those products are used in the restaurant.
Social Farm Manager Role
Elisabetta Giovenali as a manager of the social farm is in charge of: the general coordination of activities, keeping relations with partners, local authorities and other stakeholders and planning activities, expenses and new project planning development.
Social Farm Tutor Role
The various operators (tutors) are responsible for managing the work placement paths of people with disadvantages and the specific laboratories for each sector, providing support in carrying out the work.
Relationships with Social/Health Services
Pecore gialle was born through the alliance of different social reality working in the same territory (Cooperative Edith, Arci Comitato Provinciale Terni, Arci solidarietà Terni, Associazione Aladino). They work with disabilities, immigrants and asylum seekers. AIPD provide counselling services and supervision.
Relationships with families
Pecore gialle strongly trusts in the co- operation and collaboration between all the stakeholders involved in the project. Families as primary stakeholders are involved along with the direct beneficiaries during the all path towards autonomy. Families are also supported by a team to carry on the process of autonomy also in their family life.
Relationships with Social Agriculture Networks
Being a young business, born only in 2020 Pecore Gialle have just started to build up relationship with Social Agriculture network at a local level in fact, they have started relationship with the forum of Social Agriculture Network of Umbria and with Raccolti di Comunità a local network of social farms for the commercialization and development of social farms business. They have started collaboration for the recovery of abandoned or underutilized olive grows of small and very small producers which can be a first point of common development for social farms.
Vision
Pecore gialle sees farming as a way of developing personal attitude promoting inclusion and well being but at the same time being self sufficient from an economical point of view.
Active listening, cooperation, co-projection and co-management are the keys of their success. Pecore Gialle view can be summarised with the following statement: “Beyond the normal or different duality, white sheep or black sheep, the Social Farm Le Pecore Gialle has launched a path based on the coplanning of opportunities for autonomy and aggregation that involves families, operators and people with disabilities or social disadvantages”.
Development plan
Pecore Gialle was born thanks to the work of several cooperatives working in the same territory and that they are specialised in different fields. From their cooperation they put together to become a social farm. Therefore they decided to present a project “pecore Gialle” which has been financiated by the FSR and FESR 2014- 2020. The next step is to become fully sustainable and they are reaching this goal thanks to the development of the farm and agritourism through innovative ways of commercialization and promotion.
Suggestions for managing a social farm
Networking with the local stakeholders is very important as sharing experience and different points of view. A deep knolodgence of agriculture in terms of culture and business is fundamental to be sostenible and successful. A strong communication plan is also important to have significant commercial and social impact.
