Earthquake: The farmer who lived in a yurt to avoid abandoning his animals (photo)

STARTING AGAIN AFTER THE EARTHQUAKE

He dropped out of college for to dedicate himself to his land and take care of the pascoli of the family. A strong and revolutionary decision that, Marco Scolastici He wanted to carry on even in difficult times. His farm, in fact, is located on the Visso mountains, in the Marche region, and was a victim, like all the nearby towns, of the earthquake of Central Italy in 2016. A cataclysm that brought many businesses to their knees and that would have decreed certain death for the animals ofScholastic Agricultural Company, if Marco had not decided not to "abandon ship", moving to live inside a yurt, the typical mobile dwelling adopted by many nomadic peoples of Asia. In this way he managed to take care of his animals and to tenaciously produce a very particular cheese biological.

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SCHOOL FARM

Marco is 28 years old and has decided to move to the mountains for retrace the footsteps of his grandfather and fatherAfter an adolescence spent between Tarquinia and Rome, where he studied economics, the choice to return to his roots was inspired by the desire to demonstrate that The Sibillini are a land to be experienced. So he took over the family business which continues to operate between the mountains and the plains, in particular in the Lazio plain, specifically in Tarquinia, where the rest of the company is located. In this way he gave continuity of twenty-year production of organic pecorino cheese, which was in danger of disappearing with the earthquake. Visso, in fact, was one of the hardest-hit municipalities, and in the mountains where the Scolastici Farm is located, very few people remain due to the collapse of almost all the farms. To overcome this problem, Marco listened to the advice of a customer who suggested the idea of ​​a yurt. So, after making inquiries, a Dutch company offered to set up the large tent free of charge, and this "heroic" boy he managed to get through the harsh winter, continuing a production he is very proud of. In his company, in fact, once prepared, the cheese is aged in a former underground tank where the pecorino cheeses mature on library shelves. "Here, no preservatives, no synthetic products. We have been organic for 22 years," Marco explained to Paul Rumiz in an interview on Republic – Of course, the earthquake put a spoke in our wheels, but marketing didn't stop and the level of health safety never deteriorated.”

YOUNG BREEDERS

For this heroic gesture, Marco was awarded by the jury of the "Mario Rigoni Stern“, who decided to award him a special recognition, inaugurating the non-literary section called “The Guardians of the Ark“. In this way the prize, dedicated to the writer who told the world of the Alps, wanted to pay homage to the Apennine mountains, where a young boy fought to pursue his dream.

The photos are taken from the Facebook page of theScholastic Agricultural Company and from Marco Scolastici's profile

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