Ivan Fedot is the owner and manager of more than 1,200 hectares of outdoor crops: maize, sunflowers, parsnips, carrots.
Fifteen years ago Ivan took over the business from his father. It then consisted of two plastic tunnels; now it’s a high-tech business with significant investments in modern agricultural techniques and in keeping the “earth” healthy.
The farm lies in the Danube delta, a region with a large Russian population (the Lipovans). They keep their traditions and customs alive in the community and pass them on to the next generation.
The handing on of a farm from generation to generation is a crucial ambition everywhere in Romania. Stewardship and the passing down of what you have inherited is the most important motive for every farmer, big or small.
Family Fedot
For this family of Lipovans there is also a powerful sense of community. The Fedots therefore invest a great deal in the preservation of the special cultural heritage of this group of people, which has its origins in Russia. This is a family farm whose motive, to a great degree, is to grow plenty of healthy food for the community. During the tour across the extensive land I ask him whether some of his products are for export. He takes that almost as an insult and answers, “For as long as this country depends largely on imports for its food, not a kilo of what I grow will go over the border.”
‘My biggest joy is my grandson. He is four months old. I'm the happiest grandad in the world, One day he will continue to feed the people of this region and, why not, of the entire country.’
Ivan Fedot‘For as long as this country depends largely on imports for its food, not a kilo of what I grow will go over the border.’
Ivan Fedot
