Fabio Borgia, a Full-Time MBA student, has a leading role in the Le Rogaie farm, managed together with his parents and siblings. The history of an innovative project that, through social media, tells the story of a group that is attentive to social, economic and environmental sustainability.

Innovating in a sector that is considered to be among the most traditional is possible. That is shown by Le Rogaie, a family-run farm in the Tuscan Maremma, which during the first lockdown deciding to talk about its activities online. The family business is managed by the Borgia family: two parents and five children. Among these is Fabio Borgia, currently enrolled in the Full-Time MBA programme at MIP Politecnico di Milano. An engineer by training, specialised in the energy sector, he talks to us about the reasons that led Le Rogaie online: «We took our inspiration from some foreign farmers, who thanks to social media had the opportunity to talk about their activities in a transparent fashion and without stereotypes. And we also decided to try».

The farm goes online

So, Le Rogaie landed on YouTube, on Facebook, on Instagram. The views and registrations in its social channels are growing, as is the interest of users: «I believe the success comes from the mix of tradition, passion, familiarity and innovative spirit. We are real, we show ourselves for what we are, and our initiative is already attracting users from outside of Italy.  The face of the initiative is my brother Edoardo, who in the videos talks about the activities of our company with language that is technical but also informative», explains Borgia.  The contents created, which have an educational objective, and the company’s opening to research have also drawn the interest of the academic and scientific world: «The European and Italian space agencies, together with the research institute CNR and different European universities, collaborate with Le Rogaie carrying out advanced studies on chlorophyll photosynthesis, as well as taking measurements useful for the calibration of satellites». Returning “to earth”, instead, it is worth mentioning that initiative that allowed students of agricultural faculties to virtually visit the company, thus bypassing the restrictions caused by the pandemic: «Thanks to our initiative, those visits now take place online. But we would like to give everyone the opportunity to live a real experience on the farm». In fact, the social media pages are aimed at the widest possible audience. «Le Rogaie mainly produces milk. The growing attention paid to the issue of breeding, and to zootechnical issues in general, deserves in-depth information that talks about this in an honest way, also stressing an element that is central for us like sustainability».

Social, economic, environmental sustainability

«It’s a theme that has always been important for us, and that we see from three points of view», explains Fabio Borgia. «The first is that of social sustainability.  Our first commitment is to involve the local community, to be present, open to the outside world. Then comes economic sustainability, which perhaps is the biggest challenge: we have an advantage, from this point of view, from having preserved the dimensions of a family business. Each of us leverages off specific skills to reinforce the fundamentals of the company. Specifically, I follow the development of online activities and handle establishing new contacts. Last, but not in terms of importance, there’s environmental sustainability». A theme that, in the case of Le Rogaie, is strictly tied to an aptitude for innovation: a family tradition, seeing that, as Borgia tells us, his father Giulio has never shied away from experiments, whether of a social or technical nature. «In 2008 we invested in a biogas plant that closes the CO₂ cycle and produces 250 Kilowatts of electricity per hour that is now sold entirely to Enel. Our goal, ambitious but possible, is to transform Le Rogaie to become carbon negative. We want to convey the message that agriculture isn’t the exploitation of nature, on the contrary: human intervention improves nature itself», says Borgia.

At MIP for an entrepreneurial mindset

Fabio Borgia is currently enrolled in the full time MBA programme at MIP and is preparing to immerse himself in bootcamps ahead of the summer internship. «I am an engineer, but I am gradually becoming interested in governance issues. In general, I find that the whole course has been done well and is well-structured. I decided to enrol in this MBA programme because I find the technological tradition of Politecnico di Milano to be winning. For me it was an investment motivated by curriculum needs and the desire to gain access to a type of training that can offer countless opportunities, also thanks to the strong tie between MIP and companies. In fact, I have already had several interviews. Then there’s also PoliHub, the MIP incubator. Thanks to this MBA I am developing an entrepreneurship mindset, able to stimulate reflection and innovative ideas. Ideas that, of course, will also make a strong contribution to Le Rogaie», concludes Borgia.