Acer opalus - Snowball Maple
LVÖ: Commitment and drive for the preservation of our planet
LVÖ (Landesvereinigung für ökologischen Landbau in Bayern) is the Bavarian umbrella organisation for organic agriculture and food. As the umbrella organisation of the organic associations Bioland, Naturland, Biokreis and Demeter, it represents the interests of Bavarian organic agriculture. In Bavaria, more than 11,000 farms currently operate onaround 385,000 hectares, following the guidelines for organic farming. In addition, there are more than 4,000 organic farms in processing and trade.
The association's interests include the environment and climate as well as the welfare of farm animals, the future of organic farms and the production of food of the best quality. The LVÖ is involved in research, education and advisory services of organic farming interests. LVÖ is also a licensee of the Bavarian Organic Seal. "Our main task is to accompany organic farming in Bavaria politically, i.e. to set an appropriate framework for our farmers," says Hubert Heigl, the 1st chair of the LVÖ. To bring together producers of organic products, processing companies and consumers, the LVÖ, in cooperation with the Bavarian State Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Forestry, also organises the Organic Experience Days, organises the competition "Bavaria's Best Organic Products" or elects a Bavarian Organic Queen as ambassador every two years.
Assisted by his wife and son, Hubert Heigl runs a full-time farm focused on organic sow farming in Kallmünz near Regensburg. He has been on the board of LVÖ since 2014 and its first chair since 2018. He is also Naturland's regional chairman and has been president of the Naturland Association since 2017. He explains what drives him in all these tasks: "I converted my farm in 1991. At that time, pesticides were detected in the groundwater of the Jura Mountains in the Upper Palatinate for the first time. I knew there was a need for action here and wanted to contribute to a change." Hubert Heigl studied Agriculture at Weihenstephan. He welcomes the fact that the course content nowadays makes such connections clear, that there is a holistic view and many well-considered approaches. "In my opinion, however, we are still at the beginning of our knowledge on sustainability," says the 57-year-old. Given the climate crisis, he is particularly interested in close cooperation with the University of Applied Sciences.
With the tree sponsorship, the association is setting an example: "Most of our member farms also own forests. Wood always plays an important role on every farm. We need solutions for how to rebuild our forests for the future," says Hubert Heigl, who also likes the idea that the arboretum, just like our forests, will have and need a great deal of staying power.
For everyones future, he hopes that each individual will internalise and implement sustainability. "With our behaviour, we can contribute in many ways - whether it's food, energy or mobility," explains Hubert Heigl. He has been doing just that exemplarily on his farm for 30 years. Now, he is campaigning for the appropriate political framework in the LVÖ.
Distribution: Mediterranean wood species, southern European mountains, northern limit of distribution in the Swiss Jura, southern Alps, southern Black Forest and Illyrian Mountains.
Size: 8 to 12 metres tall, 5 to 10 metres wide
Leaves: deciduous, opposite, 3-5-lobed, reddish shoots, light grey-green underneath, orange to red in autumn
Flower: lemon-yellow corymbs
