In San Isidro de Penas Blancas, not far from where the Palmares festivities recently took place, a local farm located on acres of pristine rainforest land, is involved in some ancient practices that are currently and rightfully enjoying newfound interest around the world. Finca Luna Nueva Lodge is an organic and biodynamic farm involved in several activities that are essentially retooled from philosophies from long ago. A holistic approach to life is deep-seated within the activities described below, and thus prone to detractors who may dismiss them as New Age fads, but it doesn’t take much digging to find the immense value of what Finca Luna Nueva is really about.

Green Tea Adventure

The Japanese have been practicing rituals based on the preparation and sharing of tea for many centuries. At Finca Luna Nueva, the Green Tea Adventure borrows some of the ancient Japanese concepts and incorporates other experiences that are far from new, but provide a primal and satisfying experience. This adventure involves heading out to the jungle and harvesting Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) for further preparation.

The day after harvest and preparation, the ceremony takes place amidst the green tropical lushness of the land. There are a few well-being factors at play here. Relaxation is the first that comes to mind, but the satisfaction and learning are of even greater benefits. Anyone who has ever grown vegetables in their backyard, or perhaps have run into a farmer who proudly displays his or her crops, will understand the deep sense of gratification that comes from consuming something that has been lovingly grown and harvested. This is an important aspect in learning the Slow Food Movement that Finca Luna Nueva is also involved in.

Herbal Dynamics and Wisdom of Plants

Just about everyone is familiar with herbal medicine; after all, it has been practiced way before the scientific method was first applied to conventional medicine. It’s easy to become acquainted with herbal medicine, as plenty of literature on the subject can be found online or at any bookstore or library. While herbal medicine is far from being a new concept in Costa Rica, the practice had been playing second fiddle -until recently- to the conventional medicine practiced by La Caja since its inception a few decades ago. In the last few years, macrobioticas (herbal medicine shops) have become very popular among Ticos who want to combine the healing power of herbs, many grown right here- with conventional medicine.

Finca Luna Nueva offers a highly-interactive Herbal Dynamics workshop that begins with live introductions to the medicinal plants grown at the farm, then moves on to harvesting and preparation of extracts, oils, compresses and other ready-made treatments. Rather than just doing some online research and marching to the neighborhood macrobiotica, participants actually get to commune with the nature that makes these wonderful medicinal plants, learn first-hand about them, and even make them into remedies.

Slow Food Movement

Food is one of the world’s most ancient -and most important- obsessions. In the many centuries that have passed since the advent of mass farming, food production and meal preparation have become heavily industrialized. The food industry has become largely dehumanized, a theme that has been thoroughly explored in the 2002 book Fast Food Nation and the movie it inspired. The industrialization of farming is not a bad concept per se; it has effectively staved off hunger and famine in many regions of the world, but in the further process of industrialization we have transformed food into something that could actually make us sick.

The occasional meal at a fast-food restaurant or processed foods commonly found in our supermarkets will not make us sick, but overconsumption of such foods will. The Slow Food Movement can be thought of as the antithesis of the negative aspects posited in Fast Food Nation. One of the tenets behind Slow Food is to bring agriculture and gastronomy closer together and essentially slow them down. It is a proposal formulated by Carlo Petrini, an Italian man who once protested the opening of a McDonald’s restaurant in Rome. Food that is sustainably produced and lovingly prepared is not only delicious, it has a positive holistic effect.

Petrini is opposed to the vast commercialization of the culinary arts. He points out that the glut of cooking shows and television channels dedicated to cooking amount to ìfood porn.î Petrini’s philosophy is that food should be given careful and rightful consideration, and that organic farmers and chefs should merge their efforts in creating food that is both sustainable and delicious. Some Tico families still practice Slow Food when they use vegetables grown from their backyard (or even animals they raised themselves), buy food at the local Farmer’s Market, and get all relatives involved in the time-consuming preparation of a special recipe. This is one of the traditions that is sadly being lost in Costa Rica.

Finca Luna Nueva Lodge is deeply involved in promoting the Slow Food Movement and its positive philosophy. The farm recently held a Slow Food Luncheon in the Rainforest, attracting lucky members of the community who relished delicious cuisine with ingredients grown in the farm and lovingly prepared by in-house Chef Ernesto Spinelli. Some of the dishes included chicken picatta, palmito heart salad and coconut flan.

Biodynamic Farming

Organic farming is a term that is commonly utilized these days to describe agriculture that dates back several millennia. Prior to mass farming, human clans discovered how to leverage biomass to improve the sustainability of their own crop yields. This style of agriculture was lost to more efficient techniques involving chemicals, pesticides and eventually genetics. Organic farming is a philosophy that harkens back to the earliest form of agriculture; biodynamics is a philosophical approach to organic farming that focuses more on sustainability and soil preparation in order to avoid what usually happens after several pineapple crops (the soil becomes nearly depleted of nutrients). Biodynamic agriculture can also yield better crops, but its degree of involvement is significantly higher than in conventional mass farming.

Finca Luna Nueva produces 50,000 pounds of biodynamic-grown ginger and turmeric used in the production of New Chapter vitamins and nutritional supplements.

Find out more about Finca Luna Nueva and all their cool activities (including yoga) on their website.