Hazelnuts and chickens

When subsidies for tobacco cultivation were significantly cut in 2005, the Stiegler family in Franconia, Bavaria – who had been growing tobacco for the previous ten years – had to rethink their approach. In 2006, the family began planting hazelnuts and experimenting with over forty different varieties, initially on 2 hectares. [1]

The family’s son joined the business a few years later and, in 2013, also established a branch specialising in the processing, refinement and direct marketing of hazelnut products. This included a roasting facility, additional processing infrastructure and a farm shop.[2, 3]

In 2017, the farm switched to organic farming and sustainable management practices. Today, hazelnuts are grown on 9 hectares, and their own hazelnuts as well as hazelnuts purchased from the region are processed. The nuts are washed, dried, sorted, cracked and hand-selected on site. This results in roasted nuts, spreads, nougat, hazelnut oil and other nut products. Even the shells are put to good use – they are turned into barbecue briquettes and bark mulch. The products are sold via the farm shop, an online shop and regional partners in the food and retail sectors.[4, 4b]

Since 2019, there have also been two movable chicken coops housing a total of around 1,600 chickens, which are able to roam amongst the rows of hazelnut trees. These form part of a sophisticated ecological system: as organic farming does not use chemical pesticides, the chickens are deployed here to control pests. They peck and eat the larvae of the hazelnut weevil – the biggest pest in hazelnut cultivation – thereby keeping its population in check.[5] At the same time, they fertilise the soil and enjoy free range and protection from predatory birds whilst under the trees. In the evenings, they can retreat to their coop and are fed organically produced feed, some of which consists of rejected hazelnuts.[6, 7] At the same time, the organic eggs and the chickens themselves are sold. In years with a severe hazelnut crop failure, such as 2022, they were vital to the farm’s economic survival. [1]

Further sustainable investments include the construction of a rainwater retention basin to reduce dependence on rainfall; a solar panel array above the rows of hazelnut trees is in the planning stage; and the use of hydrogen to store solar power is also being investigated. [1]

During the winter months, guided tours are offered to visitors, providing insights into hazelnut cultivation, the processing chain and the roasting facility.[8]

The hazelnut venture is being implemented on the farm with great conviction and dedication. Each generation plays its part and contributes with its own ideas and responsibilities. From cultivation to the end products, every stage of the process on this family-run farm is carried out in-house, and that means a great deal of work. Agricultural policy, which remains backward-looking, with untargeted subsidies favouring large industrialized farming operations, supports neither organic farming nor hazelnut cultivation.[9]