Erich Stekovics

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Erich Stekovics (born May 7,   1966   in Frauenkirchen , Burgenland ) is an Austrian organic farmer in Frauenkirchen on Lake Neusiedl and known as the "Kaiser der Paradeiser ". Stekovics has grown 3200 tomato or tomato varieties over the years, making it the largest collection of tomato seeds in the world. In addition to other field crops, 600 varieties of chilli were added by 2014, 39 types / varieties of basil by 2011 and over 24 different organic onion rarities in 2016. Today he is regarded as an “Austrian prime example of the ideals of the slow food movement”.

Life

Romana, green zebra tomatoes and light yellow type
Cherry tomatoes
Fiesta chilli variety

Erich Stekovics' parents fled from Serbia to Austria at the end of the Second World War . With the cultivation of peppers, chilli and tomatoes from local seeds, his father Ladislaus Stekovics met the taste of the exiled Serbs. The demand for the aromatic vegetables increased so strongly that his father decided in 1958 to pursue a professional vegetable cultivation as a part-time farmer. To sell, he drove all over Austria up to six times a year to the villages where emigrants from Serbia lived. His father had the largest chilli fields in Austria until the 1980s.

Originally, Erich Stekovics wanted to be a cook, but his mother was not happy about that. Instead, he studied theology at her request. He then worked for several years for the Diocese of Eisenstadt as a religion teacher and as a consultant for lay theologians. In 1999 he made up for community service by driving cancer patients to chemotherapy . This activity finally led him to change his profession: “The patients always told me what they would do if they had time.” At the end of 1999 he broke off his pastoral work and continued his father's vegetable growing business.

Vegetable and fruit growing

As early as 2001, in the second year of his agricultural independence, his pickled tomatoes, paprika and chilli pods were included in the delicatessen range of the German mail order company Manufactum . In the summer of 2003 , he discovered that his tomato plants thrive without watering, which intensifies their taste. Agricultural scientists at the University of Innsbruck found out in 2006 that the root network of a Stekovics tomato plant measures an average of 800 meters in length and reaches a root depth of up to 1.70 m.

Erich Stekovics has therefore never watered outdoor tomatoes since 2003, only when they are planted: “Watering is the worst thing you can do to tomatoes. It dilutes the aroma and prevents the plants from forming deep roots. ”His tomatoes are also not stripped (no side shoots are cut off), not tied to sticks or cords, and no withered leaves are plucked off. This method contradicts all “German-language horticultural books of the last 50 years”. Instead, he completely relies on the vitality and resilience of the plants. In addition, it covers the earth around the plants that creep in the ground with mulch made of wheat straw, which keeps the soil moist during the day and at night keeps the heat stored during the day.

In 2003, he made three times as much sales from growing chilli as he did from tomatoes: of 400,000 euros in sales, 60 percent came from chillies and 20 percent each from tomatoes and jams. The share of sales of his chilies did not change until 2014; Stekovics explains this with the high growing risk of outdoor tomatoes: "In contrast to the tomatoes, for which a harvest failure is to be expected every six years, the chili only fails every 20 years." Paradeisern and 2010 with the chillies. Therefore, today he is the only vegetable farmer in Austria who still grows tomatoes outdoors. All other producers are horticultural companies and therefore use foil and glass houses. Stekovics only uses greenhouses to grow individual specimens of a particular variety in order to protect the seeds against crop damage and cross-pollination.

Since 2013, Stekovics has been growing eight types of organic garlic on 24 hectares (2016) for the Spar chain , including the old variety of vineyard garlic . Due to the elaborate treatment of the bulbs in the old way, the garlic can be kept for up to a year: by carefully lifting the bulbs out of the earth by hand; Let it dry on the ground so that the earth loosens by itself; no washing up due to fungal attack; braiding the tubers into braids for weeks of air drying and light-protecting packaging.

In 2013, his operation was on the verge of being shut down: the appointed and therefore not elected EU Commission presented the draft of a new EU seed regulation to the EU Parliament in Strasbourg . For Stekovics alone, this ordinance would have meant that he would have had to fill out around 65,000 pages of forms for the 4,000 varieties he cultivated and spend five to six million euros on their certification. Stekovics' operation was often cited in the Austrian media and in a signature campaign as an example of the damage these regulations would have caused. His largest trading partner, the Austrian retail chain Spar , supported him in particular in defending the diversity of varieties . In February 2014 the Agriculture Committee of the EU Parliament and in March 2014 the Parliament itself rejected the draft.

Since 2002 he has cooperated with the network of the Noah's Ark association for the preservation of rare varieties. In addition to the cultivation and seed extraction of rare varieties, he also has a photographer document whole and cut fruits for three months a year. His main focus is on cultivating varieties: “I want to preserve 100 varieties of good quality for posterity”. Stekovics regrets that, in contrast to wine, there is still no “language for describing aromas” for vegetables and fruit. One of his goals in life is therefore to find such a vocabulary and to spread it.

At Stekovics, vegetables and fruit are only harvested at the last possible point in time and are therefore no longer transportable and storable. Almost all crops are processed on the day they are harvested. The vegetables are pickled in tomato vinegar or in high-quality vinegars made from wines from the Burgenland region. Part of it comes from the Frauenkirchen Umathum winery . In addition to delicatessen shops and vinotheques, it also supplies the kitchens of top gastronomy such as Tantris in Munich and Steirereck in Vienna's Stadtpark .

In addition, Stekovics has a population of 400 mulberry trees , which he particularly values. Their sweet berry fruits cannot be transported because of their sensitivity. However, they are a pleasure for humans and animals and therefore he feeds his geese with them.

various

Erich Stekovics offers guided tours, so-called pleasure hours, for interested hobby gardeners and farmers . After registration and in small groups of no more than 20 participants, the tours take place five times a week between July and September and last up to four hours. His plant excursions have been fully booked since around 2005.

Rock singer Joe Cocker has been one of the few recipients of Stekovics' seeds. Cocker became a hobby gardener like his father in his final years, maintaining several greenhouses on his Colorado ranch . Other prominent recipients of some of his most valuable tomato seeds in April 2017 were Prince Charles , who u. a. engaged in organic agriculture , and his wife Camilla on the occasion of a state banquet in the Vienna Hofburg .

From 2007 to 2017 Erich Stekovics was involved in local politics in Frauenkirchen. With other independent fellow campaigners in the name list Erich Stekovics (NESt) he campaigned for his community as a city councilor. In Burgenland parliament he was from 2010 to 2015 for the list Burgenland active (LBL). In 2016, he was appointed to the personal committee for the presidential candidate and Green politician Alexander van der Bellen , who became Federal President in the second ballot at the beginning of 2017 .

For the Vienna Opera Ball 2018, Stekovics was invited by the organizers to take part in the “men's donation” for the male Opera Ball guests. For this purpose, Stekovics filled 2,700 glasses with two jalapeño chili pastes.

In 2019, Stekovics took on two projects as a consultant in the Far East, one for the introduction of organic farming and the cultivation of tomatoes in Mongolia and the other for a show garden near Shanghai . Both projects are scheduled for five years and should be carried out in parallel with the work on his own farm.

family

Erich Stekovics has been married to the business journalist and communication trainer Priska Koiner since May 2016. In the first marriage he had two children. The couple moved into a 160-year-old workers' and administrative house in the village, a modular type of building that the Esterházys widespread in their lands. Because of the frequent occurrence, these farm buildings were not placed under monument protection and are only rarely preserved today. A wooden table over six meters long in the kitchen is the “absolute center” of the house and is used for family celebrations as well as for staff meetings.

His sister Erni supports him in processing the harvest. In honor of his father Ladislaus "Lazi" Stekovics, he named a tomato and a pepper variety after him.

Quotes

“ The best tomatoes are almost never red. "

- Erich Stekovics 

“ For me, it's about preserving diversity, we grow to preserve. "

- Erich Stekovics 

“ The tables in Europe are covered with a handful of hybrid varieties , although there are 300,000 tomato varieties worldwide, each of which tastes different. "

- Erich Stekovics 

“ In the last 20 years, 80 percent of crops have been lost because they were no longer cultivated. Later generations will reproach us for that when there is hardly any diversity. "

- Erich Stekovics 

Awards

  • 2002: Austria's best pickled vegetables with Mangalitza peppers 
  • 2007: Trophée Gourmet from the gourmet magazine à la carte 
  • 2015: Gourmand Award for Atlas of Exquisite Chillies and Paprika 
  • 2016: Award for life's work from the Austrian Trade Association 

Publications

  • Erich Stekovics: In search of the lost taste. In: How many species do humans need? A search for clues. Published by the Austrian Federal Ministry for Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management , Böhlau, Vienna 2010, ISBN 978-3-205-78516-3 , p. 186, table of contents .
  • Erich Stekovics, Julia Kospach: Atlas of the exquisite Paradeiser and what you can do with them. Photos by Peter Angerer, Löwenzahn Verlag, Innsbruck 2011, ISBN 978-3-7066-2480-0 ;
    Erich Stekovics, Julia Kospach: Atlas of exquisite tomatoes and what you can do with them. Ulmer, Stuttgart (Hohenheim) 2011, ISBN 978-3-8001-7679-3 , 77 variety portraits, book excerpt .
  • Erich Stekovics, Julia Kospach: Atlas of exquisite chillies and peppers. Photos by Peter Angerer, Löwenzahn Verlag, Innsbruck 2011, ISBN 978-3-7066-2518-0 ; Ulmer, Stuttgart (Hohenheim) 2014, ISBN 978-3-8001-8092-9 , 77 variety portraits, book excerpt .
  • Julia Kospach, Erich Stekovics: Pickled sour. 33 cleverly simple recipes. Edition KoSte Nr. 1, Frauenkirchen 2014, self-published & -vertrieb.
  • Julia Kospach, Erich Stekovics: Cooked down sweet. 33 cleverly simple recipes. Edition KoSte No. 2, Frauenkirchen 2014, self-published.
  • Julia Kospach, Erich Stekovics: Gardening with Paradeisers. Edition KoSte No. 3, Frauenkirchen 2015, self-published.

literature

  • Ute Studer and Martin Studer (photographs): Erich Stekovics. The Paradeiser Pope from Lake Neusiedl. In: dies., Tomato lust. The Tomato Pioneer Secrets - Tips for Growing Really Good Tomatoes. Haupt Verlag, Bern 2019, ISBN 978-3-258-08102-1 , pp. 60-77. Review:. Awarded the German Garden Book Prize , 2nd place in the category Best Garden or Plant Portrait .

Documentaries (selection)

  • Triumph of the tomato. Documentary with scenic documentation, Austria, 2014, 45:30 min., Script and director: Maria Magdalena Koller , production: MR-Film, arte , ORF , CCTV 9 , series: Universum , first broadcast: April 29, 2014 on ORF 2 , Synopsis from ORF, ( memento from November 30, 2014 in the web archive archive.today ), film images , etc. a. with Erich Stekovics, Irina Zacharias, Joe Cocker .
    This documentary was awarded the Silver Dolphin in the category “Nature, Environment and Ecology” at the Cannes Corporate Media & TV Awards in 2014.
  • Erich Stekovics - The emperor of the tomatoes. Portrait film, Austria, 2009, 13 min., Production: megaherz , ServusTV , series: Wir sind Österreich , first broadcast: November 3, 2009 on ServusTV, film data from IMDb .
  • Tomatoes to turn red. Documentary, Switzerland, 2009, 35:50 min., Script and direction: Ursula Bischof Scherer, production: NZZ Format, first broadcast: June 7, 2009 on VOX , table of contents with preview of NZZ Format.
  • Eating with pleasure: the slow food movement. Documentary, Austria, 2007, 43 min., Book: Gabriella Pignatelli and Rike Fochler, directors: Carlo Buralli, production: Film Australia, CM Film Productions, ORF , German-language first broadcast: March 16, 2007 on ORF2 , summary by 3sat, ( Memento of April 12, 2013 in the web archive archive.today ).
  • The Kaiser of the tomatoes - In the realm of 1000 tomatoes. Documentary, Germany, 2004, 61 min., Script and director: Monika Kirschner, music: Simon Stockhausen , production: arte , 3sat , first broadcast: May 1, 2005 by arte, summary by Kiezbiennale Berlin.
    • The title of this program became his nickname and honorary title. 
    • The eldest son of the former Emir of Qatar , Sheikh Mohammad Ayat al-Kubaisi, happened to see this TV report in Paris and then invited Stekovics to set up a tomato plantation in Qatar. In Maria Koller's documentary Triumph der Tomato (2014) you can see the success of his efforts.

Web links

Reports

Videos and pictures

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c About us. In: stekovics.at , accessed on October 4, 2019.
  2. ↑ a b c Sophia Freynschlag: The "Kaiser der Paradeiser". In: Wiener Zeitung , May 5, 2011.
  3. ^ Paul Axmann: The vegetable specialty company Stekovics. ( Memento from June 12, 2015 in the web archive archive.today ). In: Institute for Organic Farming ( IfÖL ) at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna , 2010: “ Company profile ... Management method: organic-biological (code operation)”.
    The previously applicable term "Codex farm" stands for organic farms that do not belong to an organic farmers' association, but are subject to state controls or state-commissioned inspectors: Council Regulation (EC) No. 834/2007 of June 28, 2007 on the ecological / organic production . Since January 19, 2018, the Austrian Codex, Chapter A8, has no longer applied in Austria, but rather the “Organic Production Directive”, see: January 19, 2018 : “Organic Production Directive” replaced the Austrian Organic Codex. In: Austria Bio Garantie ( ABG ).
  4. ↑ Company tour of Bio Austria: Who goes on a journey ... In: Bio Austria , July 25, 2015, regional association excursion from Bio Austria to Burgenland.
  5. ↑ a b c Michael Grossenbacher: Committed to taste. In: alimentaonline.ch , February 8, 2011.
  6. ↑ Erich Stekovics. In: austria.info , 2015, accessed on June 12, 2015.
  7. ↑ a b Marlis Heinz: Noah's Ark of Tomatoes. ( Memento from September 24, 2015 in the Internet Archive ). In: horticulture profi , 2015.
  8. ↑ a b c d Markus Stingl: Stekovics and Spar are now relying on garlic. ( Memento from June 5, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) In: WirtschaftsBlatt , May 19, 2014.
  9. ↑ Spar : organic onion rarities. In: Mahtime! Magazine , issue 6, November 16, 2017, interview, accessed February 20, 2018.
  10. ↑ TV report: Eating with pleasure: The slow food movement. ( Memento from April 12, 2013 in the web archive archive.today ) In: 3sat / ORF2 , March 16, 2007.
  11. ↑ Garden Lexicon: Green Zebra. ( Memento of April 8, 2016 in the Internet Archive ). In: wand-und-beet.de , accessed on June 12, 2015.
  12. ↑ a b Monika Kirschner: Pickling vegetables à la Stekovics. ( Memento from December 23, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) In: WDR , Servicezeit : Kostprobe , June 13, 2005.
  13. ↑ dpa : Announcement of the arte theme evening "Delights for the palate - The pleasure of taste". In: Schwäbische Zeitung , May 1, 2005, accessed on June 12, 2015.
  14. ↑ “I fondly remember the time when we drove to Upper Austria with our old Postbus year after year and sold the fruit at the market. I will never forget the smell of the car full of chillies! ” In: My heart belongs to the chillies. ( Memento from June 16, 2015 in the Internet Archive ). In: Spar , Mahl Magazin , 2013, Issue 1, or in: "My heart belongs to the chillies." In: Spar , Mahl Magazin , 2013, Issue 1, pp. 20-23, interview, (PDF; 68 pp. 8.6 MB), accessed February 20, 2018.
  15. ↑ a b Daniela Bachal: Visiting Eric's tomato-Ark. In: Kleine Zeitung , August 19, 2013.
  16. ↑ a b In the portrait film: Erich Stekovics - Der Kaiser der Paradeiser. ( Memento from June 14, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) In: ServusTV , November 3, 2009.
  17. ↑ “At my mother's request, I studied theology and became a religion teacher.”
    In: My heart belongs to the chillies. ( Memento from June 16, 2015 in the Internet Archive ). In: Spar , Mahl Magazin , 2013, Issue 1, pp. 20-23, interview.
  18. ↑ a b c Doris Maier: In Paradise of the Paradeiser. ( Memento from June 13, 2015 in the Internet Archive ). In: Salzburger Nachrichten , August 30, 2003.
  19. ↑ a b Erich Stekovics cultivates and cherishes the variety of flavors. Goose heavenly. In: a3ECO , November 6, 2003.
  20. ↑ Manufactum Hausnachrichten Summer 2005. In: Manufactum , 2005, (PDF; 2 pp., 7.3 MB), accessed on June 12, 2015.
  21. ↑ In the documentary: Tomatoes to turn red. In: NZZ Format , June 7, 2009.
  22. ↑ a b Sebastian Herrmann : Tomato grower. The emperor of the tomatoes. In: Süddeutsche Zeitung , August 14, 2007.
  23. ↑ Paradeiser show garden. ( Memento from June 14, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) In: stekovics.at , June 16, 2014.
  24. ^ N. N .: Aroma from Austria. In: HAZ , May 16, 2015.
  25. ↑ Peter Zipser ( Noah's Ark ): Garden tip for tomato culture: crawling on the ground or on a stick. In: timmernundanderes.at , 2005, accessed on June 12, 2015.
  26. ↑ Peter Sempelmann: EU Seed Regulation and Variety of Varieties: Grain Blues. In: profil , June 21, 2013.
  27. ↑ Gerald Heschl: Food is the center of life. In: Kärntner Kirchenzeitung - Der Sonntag , March 2, 2012, conversation.
  28. ↑ Stefan May: In Paradise of the Paradeiser. In: Deutschlandfunk , October 10, 2009.
  29. ↑ Bio & in demand: Seewinkler garlic. In: burgenland. ORF.at . July 21, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2017 .
  30. ↑ Bernd Kajtna: The vineyard garlic . In: Arche Noah Magazin , 2008, No. 3, (PDF; 131 kB).
  31. ↑ The "Kaiser der Paradeiser" Erich Stekovics has revived traditional garlic cultivation in Austria. In: Kurier , August 31, 2016, with video.
  32. ↑ SAVE as before. Austrian organic garlic edition Stekovics. ( Memento of March 13, 2015 in the Internet Archive ). In: Spar , 2017.
    Current page on Stekovics with video. In: Spar , accessed on March 3, 2019.
  33. ↑ Peter Sempelmann: EU Seed Regulation and Variety of Varieties: Grain Blues. In: profile , June 21, 2013.
    Elisabeth Schmidbauer: EU seed regulation: “That is pure lobbyism.” In: Der Standard , May 2, 2013.
    Alexander Rabl: Top chefs for resistance to the seed regulation. In: Kurier , December 14, 2013.
  34. ↑ 100 percent Austrian. SPAR - food from Austria. ( Memento from June 12, 2015 in the web archive archive.today ). In: heute.at , 23 August 2013.
  35. ↑ To preserve the variety of varieties. ( Memento from June 16, 2015 in the Internet Archive ). In: Spar , 2013, p. 14, (PDF; 2.3 MB)
    Sustainability. EU seed regulation now finally shelved! ( Memento from June 16, 2015 in the Internet Archive ). In: Spar , March 2015.
  36. ^ A b Paul Axmann: The vegetable specialty company Stekovics. ( Memento from June 12, 2015 in the web archive archive.today ). In: Institut IfÖL , 2010.
  37. ↑ a b c Peter Hämmerle: The Paradeiser Paradise. In: À la carte , February 18, 2010: Erich Stekovics operates active species protection for more than three thousand tomato varieties on his Seewinkler farm. At the same time, this “Noah's Ark” has become a cult supplier for top-quality vegetable products.
  38. ↑ a b c Erich Stekovics: In search of the lost taste. In: How many species do humans need? Searching for traces , 2010, ISBN 978-3-205-78516-3 , p. 186.
  39. ^ Bernadette Bayrhammer: The Mulberries of the Paradeiser Emperor Stekovics. In: Die Presse , May 27, 2018, only beginning of article.
  40. ↑ Enjoyment hours. In: stekovics.at , accessed on August 7, 2018.
  41. ↑ Documentary: Triumph of the Tomato. In: Filmfonds Wien , 2014, accessed on June 14, 2015.
  42. Jump up ↑ tomato seeds for British princes. In: burgenland.orf.at , April 6, 2017.
  43. ↑ Wolfgang Millendorfer: List chief. Erich Stekovics: Farewell to politics. In: Burgenland People's Newspaper , July 7, 2017.
  44. ↑ NESt - the team. ( Memento of July 2, 2017 in the Internet Archive ). In: List of names Erich Stekovics , accessed on June 14, 2015.
  45. ↑ Birgit Böhm-Ritter: State election: No Stekovics candidacy. In: BVZ , February 18, 2015.
    Georg Gesellmann: Stekovics leaves the Burgenland list. In: Kurier , January 3, 2012.
  46. ↑ APA : Van der Bellen showed his celebrity supporters. In: The Standard . March 2, 2016. Retrieved November 29, 2017 .
  47. ↑ Birgit Böhm-Ritter: Stekovics chili for the opera ball. In: BVZ , January 17, 2018.
  48. ↑ Katharina Janoska: Stekovics goes to China with Paradeisers. In: burgenland. orf.at , July 31, 2019.
  49. ↑ Ripe for marriage: Paradeiser-Kaiser found love via Facebook. In: heute.at , May 30, 2016.
  50. ↑ Priska Koiner. Communication | Ethics Compliance | Trainings and Priska Koiner on Facebook , accessed April 17, 2017.
  51. ↑ a b c Christine Zeiner: Erich Stekovics from Styria plants 600 varieties in an amazing number of colors and shapes - and with taste: tomatoes like in paradise. In: Berliner Zeitung , September 29, 2008.
  52. ↑ Wojciech Czaja: We are now in a harvest phase. In: Der Standard , April 10, 2017.
  53. ↑ Michael Olma: Vienna / Burgenland (5) - Umathum / Stekovics. In: extra prima good , August 12, 2011, accessed June 12, 2015.
  54. ↑ Black Lazi . ( Memento from June 12, 2015 in the web archive archive.today ). Rich meat paradeis. A souvenir from Sarah Wiener . In: stekovics.at .
  55. ↑ Paradeis Paprika Lazi. ( Memento of March 6, 2015 in the Internet Archive ). Named after my father. Country of origin Bulgaria. The very best on a sandwich ! In: stekovics.at .
  56. ↑ a b Julia Kospach: Red-yellow variety: The Kaiser of the Paradeiser breeds 3,200 different varieties. In: Format , June 29, 2010.
  57. ↑ Three excellent Burgenlanders. ( Memento of June 10, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) In: Kurier , June 7, 2007.
  58. ↑ Winners by countries - Gourmand Awards 2015 - Austria. E02 - single subject. In: Gourmand World Cookbook Award , accessed June 12, 2015.
  59. ^ ÖGV: Unternehmergala 2016. In: Österreichischer Gewerbeverein . November 25, 2016, accessed February 20, 2018 .
  60. ↑ Sigrun Hannemann: Tomato lust by Ute and Martin Studer. In: hortus-netzwerk.de , March 19, 2019.
  61. ↑ Prize winners 2019: 2nd place “Best garden or plant portrait”. In: gartenbuchpreis.de , accessed on May 8, 2019.
  62. ↑ A syllable dolphin for the tomatoes! ( Memento of March 2, 2016 in the Internet Archive ). In: stekovics.at , October 2, 2014, original page .
  63. ↑ "The one-hour documentary by Monika Kirschner gave Erich Stekovics his title." In: Film und Fernsehen. 2005. In: stekovics.at , accessed on April 17, 2017.
  64. ^ Order for Stekovics. Tomatoes for the sheikh. In: ORF , January 4, 2006.
personal data
SURNAME Stekovics, Erich
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austrian organic farmer
DATE OF BIRTH May 7, 1966
PLACE OF BIRTH Frauenkirchen , Burgenland