Alex Santandrea is recognized as one of the pioneers of next-generation olive milling in Emilia-Romagna and is among the young professionals who are passionately and skillfully contributing to the renewal of high-quality Italian olive oil.
Alex chose to stay in his homeland and, with his own hands and vision, build a new way of making olive oil: sustainable, self-reliant, and technologically advanced.
In Casola Valsenio, in the green heart of the Faenza Apennines, Alex doesn’t just produce high-quality extra virgin olive oil—he quite literally built his oil mill himself, piece by piece.
Passionate about agriculture, electronics, mechanics, hydraulics, and software, he designed and assembled every component of his system. He enthusiastically attended all the master miller courses organized by Mori-Tem, blending technical training with hands-on experience in the field.
His production is based on complete control of the supply chain: from pruning to harvesting, from milling to bottling. The result is extra virgin olive oils with a sincere, intact, and traceable organoleptic profile—true expressions of a still-authentic land.
Behind every bottle is Alex’s vision: a young farmer who didn’t choose shortcuts but believed in hard work, skill, and innovation.
At his side is Azienda Agricola Prata, managed with his father Massimo—an exemplary model of integrated farming: peaches, apricots, vines, and olives grown with passion and processed directly on-site.
It’s a project that looks ahead, with the recent planting of over 1,000 new olive trees designed for mechanical harvesting, in line with the principles of modern and sustainable agriculture.
