Pistachio Farmer - Pillar
Parada de Rubiales, Salamanca, Spain
As our plane descended toward central Spain, the landscape below unfolded like a patchwork of beige, brown and green. Large geometric fields stretched to every horizon, revealing a countryside shaped by agriculture long before we touched the ground.
This is where I met Pilar Pascual, a 24-year-old pistachio grower from the small village of Parada de Rubiales, in the province of Salamanca.
Her family bought the farm in 2017 as a retirement project and decided to plant pistachios, creating something they hoped could last for generations. Growing up, Pilar never imagined farming would become her profession.
“My parents wanted us to understand what farming was like and the values that working the land teaches you. At first they almost forced us to help, but I realised I really liked this type of work, and I fell in love with farming.”
After receiving an admission offer from UC Davis in California, where she hoped to specialise in pistachios, the COVID-19 pandemic changed her plans. She stayed in Salamanca, continued studying Agricultural Engineering, and gradually turned the family farm into her own future.
“I wanted to professionalise this project and dedicate myself to it full time. I wanted to combine everything I was learning with the work we were already doing here.”
"The thing that makes me the proudest is knowing that society eats every day
because of the job that farmers do."
Every season brings different work. Winter is dedicated to pruning and preparing the trees, while spring and summer focus on irrigation and fruit development. Harvest is the most demanding time of the year.
“It takes us sixteen-hour workdays. But it's also my favorite season because that's when you finally see the result of everything you've worked for.”
Like every farmer, Pilar knows that months of work can disappear in a single day.
“It can look like you're going to have a very nice crop, and then suddenly frost or hail comes and you lose everything.”
Still, she continues with the same optimism.
“The thing that makes me the proudest is knowing that society eats every day because of the job that farmers do.”
Working the land has also taught her patience.
“Everything takes its time. Even when one year doesn't go as planned, next year is another opportunity.”
What began as a retirement project has become something much more personal for Pilar. The young pistachio trees now grow alongside sheep, bringing together agriculture and livestock on the family farm.
Standing beside the orchard, she smiled. “It makes me feel complete. It's like I've achieved everything I've ever dreamed of.”
For Pilar, growing pistachios is about much more than producing food.
“I’m not only producing pistachios.”
“I’m producing excellence.”
