Our Story
At the helm of Gospa Citrus is Amadora. She’s been involved in the farming of citrus fruits, especially the famous Seville oranges, all her life.
“While growing up in my childhood home, I looked forward to harvest time with great anticipation. The word, “Sevilles” would repeat in my mind because that’s what the bitter oranges going to the UK were called. The seasonal workers would arrive early to the fields to pick the oranges. In the afternoon they would return loaded with them so that that very afternoon and the next morning they would be cleaned, calibrated and packed for their final destination: The United Kingdom and other countries throughout Europe. Today we continue these traditions, which technology and organic farming have only improved: the Seville Oranges and other citrus fruits arrive swiftly to their destination, having been cultivated according to strict organic farming regulations, thereby respecting the environment and ensuring a horizon for the future.”
A family business
Gospa Citrus is a family business, led by Amadora. Her husband, José, and her children also join her in this venture. The couple have been together since they were very young, carrying on a centuries-old tradition with an appreciation for citrus fruits that grows deeper everyday as they work together to produce a product which can be enjoyed all over the world. Together they inspired the most beautiful story ever told in the citrus world.
Our values
1. Support for the environment
Promoting the values of organic farming, benefitting society as a whole, visits to organic orchards, climate and environmental awareness activities, etc.
2. Philanthropy
Making donations of fruit to soup kitchens, NGO’s or other organizations, and monetary donations to finance projects such as the construction of a fish farm, church, etc. in Spain, Peru and South Sudan.
3. Ethical treatment of employees
Granting more rights to employees than those included in the laws and regulations, such as a longer maternity leave, a rest area, an atmosphere of respect and consideration, etc.
Our brands
The word Gospa, “Our Lady” in Croatian, is what Catholics call the Virgen Mary in Croatia. Gospa is, at the same time, an homage to the 21st century woman. Citrus refers to the fruit of the family of citrus plants. Citrus fruits are the most important fruits in the world due to their excellent properties and more than 2,500 varieties.
According to a 3rd century legend, St Nicola left his entire fortune to the poor and entered a monastery. Years later, he was appointed bishop of Mira (Asia Minor), in present-day Turkey. It was then that his miracles and good deeds began.
On one occasion, St Nicola gave a bag of gold coins to a neighbour in Mira to pay for the dowry of his three daughters. This bag was sent down the chimney, hence the tradition of leaving gifts in the warmth of the firewood. This fact gives rise to the tradition of giving gifts in many parts of the world.
The children put their well cleaned shoes in the fireplace, which assures them of presents on the morning of 6 December. Traditionally, they are met with red apples, tangerines and oranges, and other gifts.
And legend has it that the oranges that St Nicola distributed came from distant lands, specifically from Mairena del Alcor (Seville), where the saint was admired for the beauty of its water mills and rounded hills. And St Nicola would establish himself in the castle to defend the faith and the orange groves that surrounded it.
Mairena del Alcor, with its abundant water springs, rounded hills and majestic castle, is the place where the miracle of St Nicola was worked. Here grow the oranges which, like treasures, St Nicola offers every year to families from all over the world.
Oranges, those sweet delicacies that have fallen from the sky to Mairena, are the legacy that Gospa Citrus wants to preserve and share with you.
Our brands
Exclusive brand of Gospa Citrus for its Seville Orange. This Seville Orange has been grown on our farms for almost two centuries. The importance of the Seville Orange in our area (Los Alcores) is very high. At the end of the 16th century there were already orange trees in Mairena del Alcor and the first ones were probably planted from the 12th century onwards. The Sevilles from Gospa represent the values and origins of a land full of beautiful stories dedicated to its rolling hills and abundant water, a land clothed in Seville Oranges since time immemorial. It is the preferred choice of marmalade lovers.
This is the division of Gospa Citrus dedicated to one of our great passions: exotic fruits. Full of colour and life, our exotic fruits cover practically the whole year and are an excellent source of bioactive compounds with antioxidant, anti-diabetic and anti-inflammatory activity, among others. Their consumption, therefore, promotes beneficial health effects. Gospa Exotics are used in gastronomy not only for their shapes, colours, flavours and aromas, but also for their high nutritional content. Gospa Exotics brings together a wide range of exotic fruits within the reach of all consumers.