Bigarade harvesting from A to Z!

For decades, Monaco has been constantly evolving while preserving the elements that make up its DNA. Among these is the harvesting of bitter oranges!

Historically an agricultural land, the country abounded in citrus fruits, which served as a currency of exchange for the population. In this way, they bartered their precious foodstuffs for rum with passing merchant ships.

Since then, Monaco has grown, and the citrus trees are still there, bearing witness to the country's centuries-old history. Today, more than 1,000 citrus trees bloom in the streets of the Principality. Every year, in January and February, gardeners from the Direction de l'Aménagement Urbain prune the various fruit trees and pick the bigarades (bitter oranges) that grow on the trees lining the various thoroughfares in the La Condamine, Moneghetti and Monte-Carlo districts.

By way of example, the harvest on rue Grimaldi requires the work of ten people over the course of a week, for a total harvest of around 1,500 kg. As in previous years, anyone wishing to use bigarades to make marmalade should contact the local gardeners.

However, the vast majority of these fruits are passed on to Monegasque players. Lycée Rainier III is one of the lucky ones, transforming the product into jam and fruit paste, but it's La Distillerie de Monaco that receives the lion's share. Using artisanal methods and selecting only the finest local raw materials, the country's only distillery produces exclusive liqueurs, spirits and eaux de vie.

The company, founded several years ago by Philip Culazzo, makes intelligent use of the fruit, where waste used to be the order of the day: "Instead of seeing the periwinkles sent to the garbage dump, these untreated fruits are recovered to make good liqueurs". The Distillerie-Aménagement Urbain collaboration was more than beneficial, since the proportion of wasted products fell from 90% to...0%.

In their distillation still, Philip Culazzo and his teams receive the bigarades - an average of 500 kg per day - and begin the transformation process, from maceration to bottling and marketing. 100% made-in-Monaco know-how and production, at the heart of a growing eco-responsible approach.

A short circuit that avoids waste and is much appreciated by the local population. The Distillerie de Monaco is therefore thinking bigger, and plans to integrate a new facility in the Fontvieille district that will triple its production capacity to 600,000 bottles a year.

For those of you who would like to pick up a few bitter oranges, here is the collection schedule planned by the Direction de l'Aménagement Urbain over the coming weeks: - La Condamine sector: rue Princesse Caroline from January 29 to February 10 - Monte-Carlo sector: boulevard d'Italie from January 29 to February 2.