Tessas Eplegård

As self-proclaimed amateurs, and with a background in biology, Tessa and Ander operate one of the few organic orchards in Hardanger, an area on the Norwegian west coast historically known for its beautiful nature and delicious fruit. While fruit growing has long traditions here, it is not as romantic as it sounds. Insects and animals damaging the crops, alongside the discovery of diseases and fungi in the 1930s, initiated “the pest war” that escalated with the first experiments with pesticides and herbicides. It did not take long until all fruit farms in Hardanger started to use chemical agents in their farming, a practice still ongoing today.  
Our task was to create the brand identity and packaging for Tessa's apple juice, cider, and honey, while exploring a more honest storytelling for a local farm, helping people to appreciate the difference between conventional farming practices and a new radical approach to fruit growing.

The concept ‘Tessas Eplegårds Venner’ makes an effort to understand ourselves as part of the ecosystem and to bring us closer to non-humans, creating a new proximity that generates different types of relationships and care. While birds and other critters might damage fruit crops, they also provide services that can benefit fruit growing. Animals and insects are important collaborators, and taking steps to conserve and enhance bird populations on the farm provides natural pest-control services while also benefitting biodiversity. Inspired by this eco-philosophical approach, we created a protocol with principles of ecological practice based on a peaceful coexistence, and dedicated the naming, illustrations, and storytelling of each product to the birds, insects, and fungi considered “enemies of apple trees.” Each product playfully thanks each critter for their contribution to the life on the farm and places friendship at the centre, as a metaphor for a new way of thinking about ecology and our role in the ecosystem. The small-scale production is underlined by a digital numbering. In the search for desirable futures and a world of coexistence, we invited several illustrators to the project, amplifying collaboration and beauty in diversity.