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ORCHARD MEADOW PROJECT

A matter close heart for over 30 years

What are orchard meadows?

Orchard meadows have characterised the landscapes of the Lower Rhine and Münsterland for centuries. These meadows consist of tall fruit trees, usually planted widely apart, allowing for both fruit ripening and grazing. In addition to growing fruit, orchard meadows can serve as pastures. They are extremely important for biodiversity, providing habitats, nesting sites, shelter, and food for more than 5,000 species of plants and animals.


A brief history

Orchard meadows originated in an era before agriculture and fruit cultivation became fully mechanized. At that time, local fruit played a far more significant role than it does today. During the 1960s, as the care and harvesting of these tall fruit trees became increasingly cost and labor-intensive, many old orchards were cut down. Meadows that once formed green belts around villages were lost to new housing and commercial developments.

Our premium project

To counteract this development, Rainer van Nahmen (84) launched what is known as our “premium orchard project” together with local groups of the nature conservation association (NABU) in 1994. With this initiative, van Nahmen made a conscious decision to preserve existing orchard meadows, improve them through targeted efforts, and establish new habitats. The project began at that time with 15 partners and has now grown to over 300 partners! Enthusiasts of our single-varietal fruit juices and juice creations pay a little more for our products than consumers of juices from conventional plantation fruit. We pass this surcharge directly on to our fruit suppliers so they can maintain their orchards sustainably and run them profitably. In return, our fruit suppliers commit to delivering only unsprayed fruit, harvested at the peak of its natural ripeness. Thanks to our gentle pressing method, the resulting high content of health-promoting polyphenols remains in our juice - a very important quality factor for us.

How to support our premium project?

By choosing our apple juices from orchard meadows, you enjoy high-quality while supporting environmental protection. Your purchase allows us to pay surcharges to fruit suppliers, helping preserve and expand old orchard meadows. What started as a project more than 30 years ago has now become a part of our future - a future we have shaped for ourselves and hope to secure for our children and grandchildren. If you would like to do even more for orchard meadows, we are happy to put you in touch with the Lower Rhine-Westphalian Orchard Meadow Association. Please feel free to contact us!

What are orchard meadows?

Orchard meadows have characterised the landscapes of the Lower Rhine and Münsterland for centuries. These meadows consist of tall fruit trees, usually planted widely apart, allowing for both fruit ripening and grazing. In addition to growing fruit, orchard meadows can serve as pastures. They are extremely important for biodiversity, providing habitats, nesting sites, shelter, and food for more than 5,000 species of plants and animals.


A brief history

Orchard meadows originated in an era before agriculture and fruit cultivation became fully mechanized. At that time, local fruit played a far more significant role than it does today. During the 1960s, as the care and harvesting of these tall fruit trees became increasingly cost and labor-intensive, many old orchards were cut down. Meadows that once formed green belts around villages were lost to new housing and commercial developments.

Our premium project

To counteract this development, Rainer van Nahmen (84) launched what is known as our “premium orchard project” together with local groups of the nature conservation association (NABU) in 1994. With this initiative, van Nahmen made a conscious decision to preserve existing orchard meadows, improve them through targeted efforts, and establish new habitats. The project began at that time with 15 partners and has now grown to over 300 partners! Enthusiasts of our single-varietal fruit juices and juice creations pay a little more for our products than consumers of juices from conventional plantation fruit. We pass this surcharge directly on to our fruit suppliers so they can maintain their orchards sustainably and run them profitably. In return, our fruit suppliers commit to delivering only unsprayed fruit, harvested at the peak of its natural ripeness. Thanks to our gentle pressing method, the resulting high content of health-promoting polyphenols remains in our juice - a very important quality factor for us.

How to support our premium project?

By choosing our apple juices from orchard meadows, you enjoy high-quality while supporting environmental protection. Your purchase allows us to pay surcharges to fruit suppliers, helping preserve and expand old orchard meadows. What started as a project more than 30 years ago has now become a part of our future - a future we have shaped for ourselves and hope to secure for our children and grandchildren. If you would like to do even more for orchard meadows, we are happy to put you in touch with the Lower Rhine-Westphalian Orchard Meadow Association. Please feel free to contact us!