In the early 2000s, dairy cattle farmers in the valley of Wipptal in northern Italy found their herds were producing an excess of slurries. Furthermore, due to reasons such as conflicts with tourism (odour problems) and the fact that 40% of the meadows in the area are steep sloping, limited or even no manure application was possible. The vineyards in the region wanted to move away from costly artificial fertiliser and towards organic, natural fertiliser made from cattle manure. 65 dairy farmers and their wine growing neighbours came together to discuss the issue. The decision was made that this difficult situation could actually be transformed into an excellent opportunity for both parties and for the region in general. They got in touch with industry representatives, agricultural advisors and researchers from two universities and developed the idea for a project – to create a biogas company.