Grape- or fruit picking: what is it, why should you do it and where is the best place to go?

What is grape picking?

• Grape picking is cutting bunches of grapes from the grapevine or vine. The bunches of grapes are removed from the grape plants in one piece and then distributed over the crates.
• You often work in an international team from different countries.
• The grape harvest is often a relatively short period, the timing of which depends on the local weather; it can sometimes be difficult to plan to arrive at the right wine region at exactly the right time.

What is fruit picking?

• Fruit picking is done in orchards where apples, cherries, olives, plums, oranges or other fruit are picked from the branches or from the ground.
• Harvesting exotic crops such as cocoa, kiwi, coffee berries and bananas also falls under fruit picking.
• Depending on the fruit you are harvesting, you may sometimes have to climb trees or steps or bend down a lot or even crawl.
• Fruit picking can be done in all kinds of places all over the world. If you organize it well and know when to be where, you can pick fruit all year round in Europe or the world.
• To prepare fruit for picking, a grower often has to do a lot of preparatory work, such as pruning, thinning and weeding. These activities in fruit growing also offer opportunities if you want to work abroad.
• Some experience in this area can make the work more fun, and also a lot more lucrative if your payment depends on how much you pick.

What are the working conditions?

• In most jobs as a fruit picker, you are paid based on the amount of fruit you pick. However, there is usually a set production level that you must achieve as a minimum, especially if the farmer provides a place to sleep and food for you.
• Try not to feel too discouraged at the end of the first day or week if it turns out that some experienced employees have picked three times as much as you. You can always try to copy their technique or ask for advice. After a week or two, your earnings and self-confidence will certainly have increased.
• You can often stay cheaply at a nearby campsite or for free at the farmer's own place
• How physically demanding the work is depends on the crop you pick and what exactly your duties are around the harvest.
• You usually have to be at least 18 years old.

Why to pick fruits or grapes?

• To stimulate your sense of involvement: sometimes you work very intensively on a farm for a long time with the same people, you often also sleep in a room with them: you have to like that, but you also make friends for life.
• To make the world around you more sustainable: by looking for work in organic farming or permaculture.
• To be profitable in a creative way: Some small farmers will not be able to pay you a wage, but offer a place to sleep and food in exchange for work. To gain new experiences: You experience much more during your stay on the farm and when you go to work than when you would travel around alone.
• To increase your self-awareness: further away from your familiar environment you discover more quickly what you can actually do and what you actually want. By going to work you encounter yourself more often, you get to know yourself better and accept who you are and want to be.
• To test your environmental awareness: by living and working in rural areas, you experience a foreign culture in a completely different and more authentic way than when you work in the tourism sector, for example.

Where can you pick grapes and fruit abroad?

• Australia: fruit picking
• England: fruit picking, especially in southern England
• France: grape picking, fruit picking
• Georgia: fruit picking
• Greece: olive picking
• Italy: grape picking, fruit picking
• Jordan: fruit and olive picking
• New Zealand: fruit picking
• Spain: grape picking, fruit picking, olive picking
• Thailand: fruit picking
• Switzerland: fruit picking

What do you need as a grape or fruit picker?

• Professionalism: you often have to work hard and hard, which is why the average slacker usually doesn't last long on a farm or nursery
• Flexibility: the weather conditions and the growth of plants don't always go according to plan, which means that your flexibility will often be called upon
• Ability to work together: being able to or learning to work together with a group of seasonal workers or with the farm family will always be necessary

To what extent are you insured for the risks as a fruit and grape picker?

There may be several reasons why you need separate insurance when picking fruit or grapes abroad

• Your local health insurance normally lapses. You then need special insurance to remain insured against illness and accidents.
• Local employers usually do not offer any, or only limited, supplementary insurance.
• The risk of accidents is somewhat greater on farms and in the fruit growing business than in other sectors.
• A number of specialized insurances offer opportunities to do (temporary) paid work abroad where you run a bit more risk, such as working in orchards or vineyards.

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