Spicy Saxony

An article in a trade magazine brought Andre Gano to garlic cultivation. In 2017 he ordered the first test plot, and in 2018 things really took off. However, the weather put a spoke in the agricultural career changer's wheel. "It was far too hot, and I should have watered earlier," he knows today. The harvest from the Lusatian soil remained small and puny.

Because he couldn't get rid of the small tubers, Andre Gano and his wife decided to process them themselves. Their first product: a garlic dip. "It was well received by friends and relatives, which encouraged us to continue."

Meanwhile, Lausitzer Knoblauch's product range includes herb mixtures for game or poultry, vegetable broth and herb salt. The Landhof Gano team sells fresh and instant garlic through regional retailers and its own farm store in Königswartha.

Premiere at the Green Week

At the International Green Week (IGW), Lusatian garlic is for the first time and brings the variety of the onion plant to the guests. While garlic is normally not harvested until July, the so-called green garlic can already be picked from the field in May. The bulb is then not yet formed. Its taste is reminiscent of spring onions.

The black, fermented garlic is particularly healthy. It has a less intense smell, contains many antioxidants and tastes a bit like plum. Lausitzer Knoblauch offers it, among other things, processed into a fruit spread with mango, the "Knobilade". Fresh, white garlic is available in combination with wild berries.

Pesto made in Saxony

A few meters away, Beate Lehmann from Teigwaren Riesa is tasting pesto and pasta sauces. "They are new to the range and, like our pasta, are made from regional ingredients," she says. The jars are very popular with visitors, especially the classic basil pesto.

Those who visit the traditional company, founded in 1914, at its site in Riesa, Saxony, get an insight into production and can immerse themselves in the history of the company in Germany's only pasta museum. The restaurant serves changing dishes made from the company's own products. A visit to Saxony's producers is therefore not only worthwhile at the IGW.

Visitors can meet Saxony's exhibitors in Hall 21b.