You’re best known as the man behind Seeds of Italy, and those gorgeous packets of Franchi Seeds so beloved of gardeners and allotmenteers: thank you for our ongoing discount at gfw.co.uk. How’s business?

Hi all, and yes, the Franchi brand is now well known and the same family since 1783 (7 generations) – the year Mozart wrote his first mass and the Montgolfier balloon flew over Paris!). We specialise in endangered veg (on the Slow Food Ark of Taste), heritage, ethical and vintage seeds with provenance and lost flavours. I always say we have no customers, only fans, and I’m proud to be a multiple RHS medal winner!

How long have you been a Guild member, and have you found it useful?

Been a member for some years now and I love when I am on my stand at the RHS Hampton Court Flower show or Abergavenny Food Festival and other members come over and say hello and we talk food and seeds.

But there’s another side to your life. How did you become involved in Ukraine?

When war broke out in 2022, I tried giving to a charity but for me it wasn’t enough. So we (me and Ali, a 20 year old who had been excluded) filled my old 7 seater with aid and left. 22 hours later we arrived on day 4 as the first private Brits in Dorohusk taking 23 women and children (and a kitten) to safety including injured, raped and bereaved and all exhausted and without their men over our 3 trips. The women wouldn’t cry until the children fell asleep. We were not on the front line, but we were in a war zone. My son Vincenzo then 16 came on trip 2, and my wife and daughter 14 on our 3rd trip to Poland to help the refugees. When I got back, I immediately joined St John Ambulance, Ali who came with me turned his life around and is now a filmmaker and Vincenzo qualified as an emergency responder and Close Protection Officer. My car trip to the Polish Ukraine 🇺🇦 border. Aid out, Refugees Back. 3.3.2022

And more recently you were in Valencia?

In early November we (Ali, Vincenzo and me) flew out this time as an experienced volunteer emergency response team to ground zero in Aldaia and Catarroja. Initially tasked with digging out underground garages searching vehicles for victims, we worked alongside Spanish medics, we cleared a partially collapsed 4 story building and general cleanup work. Ali documented our trip to raise awareness.

Watch the Documentary

This is not one street in one town as you see on the news. It’s every street in every town over an entire region. The devastation is massive over a vast area, you cannot imagine it, even if you try. Unlike in Ukraine where it was chaotic but well organised by government, the effort in Valencia is totally people led with support by the emergency services. 14 days after and some towns have barely been touched so PLEASE do whatever you can, donate, pray, get involved in supporting our Spanish friends.

How do you combine your business and humanitarian activities? 

Seedsman by day, Emergency Responder by night! Most normal dads play golf or go to the footie, but me and Vincenzo pick people up off the floor in their hour of need and care for them and there is something really cool and deeply satisfying about that. Vincenzo outranks me (Lol) and we are also both NHS/LAS Volunteer Local Resuscitators and on the Wembley Stadium Medical team. I organise Classics at the Villa – cars and outstanding Italian street food (1/6/2025) and am on the committee of the Italian Sagra in Clerkenwell in July, on the PFA at school, run a family, a business etc! That is a lot of volunteering but a lot of fun and helping others is my drug and my wife is very understanding! My daughter 16 has now joined SJA cadets and I didn’t even have to force her – but mainly because in the course of my duties I recently covered Green day, Taylor Swift, Arctic Monkeys, ACDC, Springsteen etc plus football, rugby, the Marathon etc you name it!  Our crowdfunder is still open for a few days if anyone can donate.

Donate

To finish where we began, anything new and exciting Guild members should look out for in your spring catalogue? 

So something new to me after 25 years importing the Franchi seed brand is next season, not being able to import tomatoes and peppers. Brexit only happened in April this year with the new Border Control Points BCP’s. I can get them thru all EU bio security virus checks, phytosanitary certificates, IPAFFS, CHED, Plant Passports etc, but at the UK border they are stopped and incinerated on sight as DEFRA decided to diverge and added a very low level banal virus not checked for and so by default they are illegal on arrival. The Dutch are unable to ship any peas, beans or broad beans to the UK now for a similar reason. There are mass shortages across UK horti and next year so far I will have just 4 tomatoes and no chillies or peppers and as such this means I cannot even produce a catalogue right now until things are clearer.

But new to us for 2025 though is our new Vintage seed range based on a 1928 Franchi catalogue and PURE English grown wildflowers with no fillers or grasses.

Wishing you all Buon Natale and feel free to come and visit – our coffee machine is always on for GFW Members!!