Our farmers · Sicilian olive growers
A community, not a single grove
Castruriali is a network of Sicilian farmers. We farm our own groves in Castroreale, where we are reviving the rare Nustrali olive, and we work with farming families across the island. Every bottle is made and hand-bottled by the Mandanici family in Castroreale.
How we work
Why we grow across Sicily
One hillside can lose a harvest to drought, heat or a late frost. By working with growers in different parts of Sicily, with different land and different native varieties, we keep good oil coming every year. And it means the value of our oil reaches farming families across the island, not only in Castroreale.
Castroreale, Messina
Our own groves
We farm and restore olive groves in the hills above Castroreale, including the rare Nustrali, an olive found almost nowhere else. These are the trees our adopters name.
The Nustrali olive →Across Sicily
Partner farmers
Families who have farmed their land for generations, growing native Sicilian varieties. Our current oil comes from the Monte family in Salemi, Trapani.
Meet the Monte family →Castroreale, Messina
The Mandanici mill
Every Castruriali oil is made and hand-bottled by Antonio Mandanici and his family in Castroreale.
The mill →
Salemi, Trapani · our current harvest
Maria Concetta & Francesco Monte
The Monte farm was founded in 1960 by Maria Concetta's parents, in the hills of Salemi in western Sicily. She took it on in 1990 and runs it with her family today, alongside her husband Francesco, known to everyone as Ciccio, who has farmed olives all his life. Its 17 hectares grow wine grapes, durum wheat and a seasonal vegetable garden as well as olives.
Some of their olive trees are more than a century old; others were planted about ten years ago. All are native Sicilian varieties: Cerasuola, Biancolilla and Nocellara, the same three olives in the Castruriali you can buy today.
“The love for nature and the genuine things that the earth can give us.”
Maria Concetta Monte
The family has always farmed without chemical pesticides. Following what their parents taught them, the trees are fed with organic manure every autumn, the soil is milled to keep weeds down, and dry branches are pruned away. The olives are picked in October and November at the turn of colour, when they hold the most polyphenols, using combs and nets that protect the trees, and go straight to the mill.
| Farm | Monte Maria Concetta, Salemi, province of Trapani |
|---|---|
| Family | Founded in 1960 by Maria Concetta’s parents; run by Maria Concetta since 1990, with her husband Francesco |
| Land | About 17 hectares of olives, wine grapes, durum wheat and a seasonal vegetable garden |
| Olive trees | Centuries-old trees alongside younger trees planted about ten years ago |
| Varieties | Cerasuola, Biancolilla and Nocellara |
| Care | No chemical pesticides · organic manure every autumn · soil milled to control weeds · careful pruning |
| Harvest | October and November, at the turn of colour, with combs and nets that protect the trees; olives taken straight to the mill |
Their olives make our 2024/2025 Early harvest, made and hand-bottled in Castroreale and awarded Great Taste 2025.
Questions
Who grows our olives
Who grows the olives for Castruriali?
Our current 2024/2025 Early harvest is grown by the Monte family on their farm in Salemi, in the province of Trapani. Maria Concetta Monte has run the farm since 1990, with her husband Francesco; her parents founded it in 1960.
Does Castruriali grow its own olives?
Yes. We farm and restore our own olive groves in the hills above Castroreale, including the rare Nustrali olive. Different Castruriali ranges come from our own groves and from partner farmers elsewhere in Sicily.
Why does Castruriali work with farmers across Sicily?
A single hillside can lose a harvest to drought, heat or frost, so working with growers in different parts of Sicily keeps good oil coming every year. It also means our oil supports farming families across the island, not only in Castroreale.
Where is the oil made?
Every Castruriali oil is made and hand-bottled by Antonio Mandanici and his family at their mill in Castroreale, in the province of Messina.
More: the trees · Sicilian olive varieties · sustainability · adopt an olive tree
From the Monte farm
Grown in Salemi, made in Castroreale
Cerasuola, Biancolilla and Nocellara olives from the Monte family, made and hand-bottled by the Mandanici family. 2024/2025 Early harvest · Great Taste 2025 · 410mg/kg polyphenols.