Food as Connection
The Social Heart of
The Veg Box
What first inspired you to enter the
world of farming?
To be very honest, it all happened quite
quickly. I never really set out to work in
this sector.
After leaving the corporate world in
international hospitality management,
I started working part-time as a
gardener in September 2012. The 2008
global recession had already pushed
me to rethink what I wanted from life—
something calmer, more meaningful,
and purposeful.
After a few months in the gardens, I
began growing more vegetables than
I could manage, so I started selling
them simply to make space for the next
season. That's how it began.
Over time, the work and the community
around it became something I deeply
valued. There's a special satisfaction
in being part of a system that feeds
people. This isn't like selling shoes or
lamps. This is food people put into their
bodies.
What drew you to sustainable
Emanuela de Giorgio
reflects on how The Veg
Box and The Farmoury
grew from a personal shift
into a community-driven
model for sustainable
farming in Malta, where
social connection, shared
responsibility, and local
food systems come
together to reshape how
people eat and relate to
agriculture.
