Oranges · Valencia Late · Round 2, 2026–27 season
Finca La Muestra
Ribera Alta, Valencia, Spain
- 6 years regenerative
- 14 hectares
- Oranges, Mandarins, Persimmons
A fictional family farm used to show how a campaign works. Three generations have grown citrus on the same fourteen hectares on the Júcar plain. Six years ago the family stopped tilling between the rows, let a cover crop grow and started making compost from the farm’s own prunings.
Their customers often say the oranges taste different. The family wants to know whether that shows up in the lab, and they want to publish whatever they find, including the parts that look ordinary.
What gets tested
Panels unlock in order as the total grows. The Core panel is the minimum for the campaign to run.
- A
Core
FundedUnlocks at €2,800
- Vitamin CAscorbic acid in the juice and flesh.
- Brix (sugars)Dissolved solids, mostly sugars, in the juice.
- AcidityTitratable acidity, mostly citric acid.
- Dry matterWhat is left once the water is removed.
- Potassium (K)A mineral the tree takes up from the soil.
- Calcium (Ca)A mineral the tree takes up from the soil.
- Magnesium (Mg)A mineral the tree takes up from the soil.
- Iron (Fe)A trace mineral, present in small amounts.
- Zinc (Zn)A trace mineral, present in small amounts.
- B
Extended
Next€1,240 to go · unlocks at €4,600
- PolyphenolsA family of plant compounds, measured as a total.
- Antioxidant capacityA lab assay of the extract (ORAC or FRAP).
- CarotenoidsThe pigments behind orange and yellow colour.
- NitrateNitrate stored in the fruit, often linked to fertiliser use.
- C
Full
Stretch goal€3,840 to go · unlocks at €7,200
- Pesticide residue screenA multi-residue screen of several hundred compounds.
- Heavy metalsCadmium, lead and other metals from soil or water.
- Shelf-lifeHow firmness, weight and vitamin C change over 21 days.
Practices
- Permanent cover cropsince 2020
Native grasses and legumes between rows, mown, never tilled.
- On-farm compostsince 2021
Chipped prunings and local manure, about 12 t/ha a year.
- Drip irrigationsince 2019
Scheduled by soil-moisture probes in three blocks.
- No herbicidessince 2020
Weeds managed by mowing and grazing sheep in winter.
Soil
- Organic matter
- 2.4%
- Texture
- Clay loam
- pH
- 7.8
Illustrative figures. Organic matter was 1.6% in 2020, measured by the same method.
Rewards for backers
From €10
The full results
The full lab report and the reviewer’s notes, sent to you first and whatever they show.
Back this campaignFrom €35
Presale box
A 5 kg box from the sampled harvest, shipped within mainland Spain, plus the full results.
82 / 120 left
Back this campaignFrom €60
Your name on the report
Listed as a backer in the report, plus the presale box.
Back this campaignFrom €120
Farm visit
A morning walk through the orchard with the family on sampling day, plus everything above.
7 / 12 left
Back this campaign
Where the money goes
Shares of the Core panel cost. Larger panels add lab costs only.
- Lab analysis 64%
Accredited lab, farm sample and retail sample, run side by side.
- Independent sampling 16%
Sampler’s visit, retail purchase, cold courier, chain of custody.
- Scientific review 12%
A named reviewer checks the method and signs off the report.
- Platform and publishing 8%
A flat fee, the same whatever the results show.
If the goal isn’t reached
- If the Core panel isn’t funded by the deadline, every backer is refunded in full and the partner’s match is released.
- If Core is funded but a stretch goal isn’t, the Core panel runs and nothing is charged for the panels that didn’t unlock.
- Rewards are only sent once a campaign is funded.
Funded by
- The farm
- €800
- 71 backers
- €1,280
- Matching partner
- €1,280
Updated as pledges come in. Our fee is the same whatever the results show.
Sampling and publishing rules
Fruit is drawn at random from three outgoing shipments by an independent sampler. The farm doesn’t choose it.
The same variety is bought at retail the same week and tested side by side.
An ISO/IEC 17025 accredited lab runs the analysis, and a named scientific reviewer checks the method.
Backers receive all results first. This farm also agreed to publish them under its name, whatever they show. Farms that don’t agree contribute anonymised results only.