Éloïse, rooted and connected
Éloïse Gross, 18, is a market gardener. Through Instagram posts, the family farm in Domangeville in Moselle is making itself known. Into the wild 100% organic and “only” positive vibes. Favorite meeting.
What brought you to market gardening?
My father Georges. He took over the farm in 2001. A few years ago, my sister and I wanted to earn some money. So, we had a small orchard and we sold our products on Saturdays at the market. It was great. And, in fourth grade, I decided to stop school and take correspondence courses to devote myself entirely to market gardening.
What did the teachers think?
They weren't very hot! My father was for it. My teachers told me things like “you’re not going to stop school to become a farmer.” For them it was shocking! Now they are coming to get me vegetables! And they are very proud.
How do you divide the work with your father?
He works all the machinery - the heavy work of the land in short - the seedlings and I work more on everything relating to watering, planting, crop maintenance, harvesting, potted plants... obviously nothing fixed . No day is the same!
What have you brought since you were 15?
I brought social networks which change a lot of things for us. I'm building a community around the farm and then the youth probably also because I gave a little boost anyway! And my father was motivated by his daughters working with him. I always want to do more!
How many are you on the farm?
We work a lot as a family. There are five of us: there is Agathe, my 22-year-old sister, our father Georges, another Eloïse, an apprentice and a new seasonal worker Romain, originally from Le Mans.
What is the most important problem today for market gardening?
Clearly, drought! For tomatoes, I use old, more resistant varieties, such as the pineapple tomato or the Crimean black, the beef heart, the Bern rose and the blackferry.
How do you like to cook vegetables?
Just fried. A stir-fry for the month of April: chard, carrots and small new turnips. I add a touch of curry, salt and pepper and a little cream! And the cream is of course from a small producer!
And the meat?
I eat little meat, but good. Two or three times a week. I like dishes with sauces like bourguignon! I adore !
The challenge of 2021?
I have a project for a new greenhouse! There is one heated greenhouse and three cold greenhouses. And of course develop our social networks!
Is it accepted to be a woman in a rather masculine environment?
Among young people, absolutely! There may be a few machos among the older ones who may think that it is a man's job. But I don't pay attention to what they say.
What has changed between these two generations?
No doubt the fact that today we want to have a life on the side, a “normal life”. Confinement has changed the situation, our time is totally dedicated to work and it's difficult to have time for ourselves. I need to meet people, to take the time to travel. I think my father was depriving himself and that I think is a generational question.
Consuming better and less already starts with learning the seasons and for that there is only one solution: go to the market, buy local or direct from the producer.
Has confinement changed the image of market gardening?
Yes, during the first confinement. Many people have discovered that there are great products right near them. We were “the best”. Although we were lucky enough to retain some of this new clientele, many people did not return at all afterwards.
What are you going to improve on the farm?
We are going even further on reducing plastic for greenhouses. We will use reusable plastic for ten years. Processing side: zero. Nothing. Even those that are used and tolerated organically are not part of our working methods. And of course all our packaging is plastic-free.
What do you think about veganism?
I think we need to eat better. If you already consume products from small producers, local and organic when possible, that's good. You have to eat meat! But better! Better and less. When I buy meat, it is only from small producers. There are vegans who eat imported products that are worse than local meat like avocado, sweet potato or soy.
What does that mean to consume better and less?
Consuming better and less already starts with learning the seasons and for that there is only one solution: go to the market, buy local or direct from the producer. It's good for the planet and for the body. In April we already have the return of leeks and carrots but from May onwards it will be fantastic: turnips, peas, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, new carrots, rhubarb, broccoli, herbs, parsley, rosemary, chives, salads…
What has changed with the pandemic?
My social life. There is something lost. Before with friends we saw each other two to three times a week. In the markets, we can no longer go for coffee. Life is really sad. There's just work left. I complain but I'm on the farm, I see nature, I see people. I know this isn't necessarily the case for everyone.
Why we love
In one of her photos, Éloïse Gross plays with fashion codes and uses the title of Vogue in the background. It's obviously a trick but the idea of finding it on the cover of such a magazine would be refreshing. Mosellane has it all. She is indeed a model. And let's quickly chase away the word "inspiring". Faced with condescending teachers who wanted to dissuade her from working in market gardening with her father Georges between "pass your baccalaureate first" and "you are not going to become a peasant all the same" , she held her ground and led from the front continued schooling and work in the fields. Hat. His Instagram account is too lively and colorful to be a snub to narrow-minded people. She is above all that, she thinks of tomorrow, well rooted. His publications reflect this optimism and a joy of living that feels good: it's cheerful, enchanting, simple, healthy. It is good to stroll there and discover an everyday life without retouching, simply and beautifully presented with a certain talent for photography and framing. There her earthy hands, then her back which suddenly gets stuck due to bad posture, here the tractor in the frozen lands of Moselle, and here is already the harvest of the new aillet... Éloïse did not wait for the apostles of the next world to change your world while remaining free. She is not a sectarian activist like those who find their way to Damascus late in life, she works because she was born into it, she loves it and because the small family business is seen as a local business to be run. Yes, there are difficult days. The long summer nights trying to save a few crops attacked by drought are among them. But in the mornings, there is also its nature, its landscape, its land. She moves forward, without boasting, with a big smile rather than with big speeches. The result is these generous, smiling and inevitably very good vegetables to be found on the markets of Metz and Thionville!
Buy Domangeville farm products
The farm's products are on sale on the markets of Metz and Thionville in Moselle. You can also go to the Domangeville farm which is located in Pange in Moselle, 20km from Metz.