My mother turns 95 this summer. She still walks 5 kilometres a day. She has experienced and survived a lot. But if I could not come and have a coffee with her every morning, she would get sick. Relationships nourish us like food. Quality is fundamental in both. We have three kids and two grandchildren. Although we are working together, we are currently really enjoying our time over lunch. We have not laid off any of our employees, too. I know things will come back.
Jakob Prantl
„Things will turn out for the better“
Jakob Prantl (59) is a farmer and hut owner with a big heart and a strong head. His alpine pasture, the Gampe Thaya, is nestling high above Sölden at 2,000m. Here you neither get fast food nor loud music. The Gampe is a place where you take your time - for the person next to you, for the view on the alpine peaks and for the food on your plate. The kitchen serves local produce from the valley – or from Jakob’s beloved alpine cattle breed, the Tyrolean Grey, which is grazing on the Gampe and providing the milk for his cheese.
On the Gampe, we have a rest day. A lot of people can’t believe we are closing the doors once a week. But it’s important. Down in the valley, we are currently investing a lot in our old farm to improve animal, but also human welfare. Of course, I could keep 40 cows, but is productivity good for our cycle? We have 25 cows now and want to cut down to 20. A cow should produce 10.000 litres of milk? Mine give 5.000 and I can survive, too. Our son was in Nepal in 2015, when the severe earthquake struck the country. It had a strong impact on his views on life. Every crisis is a chance. We are not worried, but we are thoughtful. And we believe that less can be more. We have to take care and preserve the freedom we still have in our valley. And we have to preserve the time we have for ourselves and the people around us.”