An Italian olive oil company is taking its first steps into the U.S. market with a distribution site at Brunswick Landing.
Italian natives Julia Franchi Scarselli and her father Camillo Franchi Scarselli learned that local farmers were being forced to abandon their olive groves because of the financial hardships and unpredictability in climate conditions. This sparked the beginning of their business venture, Libellula, to assist farmers with the distribution of olive oil.
Julia Franchi Scarselli. Libellula website photo
“Libellula is a collective that provides access to resources to our farmers,” Julia Franchi Scarselli said. “We have about five farmers who are providing olive oil from their groves. We provide them with access to the market in the U.S. because alone they are only giving olive oil away to friends and family. They are not producing the quantity sufficient to have another stream of revenue, but this is providing another stream of revenue to them.”
After operating primarily in Italy since its inception, Libellula opened its new headquarters at Brunswick Landing earlier this year.
Head of marketing at Libellula, Pepper Gross was born and raised in Brunswick and was influential in the Scarsellis’ decision to distribute olive oil from the state.
“When thinking about where in the U.S. to base a warehouse, I think a lot of people consider big city hubs like New York, Chicago, or Los Angeles,” Gross said. “For me, I felt that Libellula’s farmers and mission were so much more aligned with how Mainers live and care about their community. Mainers really value preserving traditions and hard work, alongside championing sustainability and regenerative agriculture. Brunswick feels like an extension of our small-town Italian community in Sabina.”
Scarselli echoed Gross’s sentiments about Mainers and their support for local agriculture.
“I know that in Maine, a lot of farmers and people value local produce and shopping organically and supporting local cooperatives and are more connected to different cycles of nature in Maine,” she said. “The local families who are starting to buy our olive oils from our website say it is like receiving Italy on their doorsteps. It makes them feel like they are traveling without ever leaving their house.”
Scarselli said she decided to enter the U.S. market because she saw a lack of quality olive oil stateside.
“I went to college in western Massachusetts, and I was living with my feet in two worlds,” Scarselli said. “I was half-American and half-Italian, and I was really missing the connection to Italy. I was also living in the U.S., and I was feeling this lack of quality olive oil but also this lack of connection to the land.”
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