For the love of vegetables (seasonal)
We have stayed at home. But there are many who have not been able to do so. Those who have followed the foot of the canyon so that we can be stocked with food . Among them, the farmers, who with all the difficulty associated with the Covid-19 crisis, have not ceased their activity. Now we have to remember them.
We have become accustomed to eating melons in January and tomatoes all year round. . But in the field, each product has its time. In fact, just before the health crisis broke out, the European strategy was going to be approved ' From field to table '. A mutual consensus that will allow ensure sustainable primary production, encourage sustainable food processing practices, promote sustainable consumption , facilitating healthy diets and reducing food loss and waste. And with all this, help the planet . Confinement has made us realize the damage we cause on Earth and with the incorporation of vegetables in our diet, we improve our health and create healthy habits.
This green smells from photography
But, How has the crisis been experienced in the countryside? “It has not been easy to maintain a production level stable during the hardest part of the confinement. The field is an ecosystem with its own rules and sometimes and It is complex to comply with the planting and harvesting periods , taking into account the availability of personnel or the problems of moving them to work.", they explain. Blanca Entrecanales, founder of Dehesa el Milagro and she continues: "Some crops have been planted a little later than usual, which can vary the availability of the product at the point of sale."
And the problem is even more complex. “Before the entire current health crisis, the farmers asking for fair prices and against the cut in aid from the CAP. If they are cut, a good part of the small and medium farmers will disappear . If they disappear what are we going to eat? People are always looking for the offer -of products from other countries- and when we do that, you don't realize that you are ruining the one you have next to home", he denounces Alfonso Guindulain at the head of Vegetables of Navarra . “In Spain we are privileged. In practically no other country in the world can you find the number of growers that we have here.”
The proposals since then have only consolidated and encourage us to consume local and seasonal . Because a sector already punished in itself has suffered even more from the closure of the HORECA channel. With restaurants closed, many of its productions remain in the countryside and without buyers.
Vegetables, local and seasonal
For example, from the Navarre Government , have created a promotional campaign. 'We eat at home. We eat from home', to boost the local economy, support the rural environment and recognize its farmers and ranchers. For his part, the EDER Consortium (invigorating the economy of the Ribera de Navarra) with its motto 'Somos Verdura', has created some Lists of suppliers that send products from the garden to your home , through a campaign on their social networks and website. In addition, they do not forget the hospitality industry. “ The idea is to connect production with restoration. Many cooks have their own vegetable garden or feed off of small producers . One way to make them visible is by publishing recipes with seasonal produce . This is one more incentive, so that everyone is encouraged to acquire the products to prepare the dish," explains Susana Ricarte, from the consortium's Department of Tourism.
And from the hospitality sector, more allegations arrive. Ricard Camarena it's a firm advocate of consuming seasonal produce . So much so, that at the beginning of May, he organized a direct on Instagram to cook with him in real time. What is really new is that together with Toni Misiano, your trusted farmer , he arranged a cast of about 500 kilos of artichokes in the Valencian towns of Barx and Albalat dels Sorells . The idea? Value rural environments, seasonal and proximity products and, of course, local producers.
Toni Misiano's orchard
“We wanted to generate an impact in the short range. Make the people around us feel good . It all started with a Whatsapp group with the people from Barx, we organized a cooking contest for children, we did live broadcasts for the members of the group in which we cooked together, we connected with the businesses of the town , so that the ingredients for the recipes could be bought there... The proposal came from that idea. We made the biggest circle towards the town of Toni Misiano and his farm”, explains to Traveler.es Ricard Camarena . “By doing it through Instagram and for the whole world, we wanted to raise awareness about the importance of local consumption and put the focus of attention on rural areas, on the productions of small producers...”, he concludes.
And they have not been the only ones. LAN Warehouses , with the objective of support the men and women of Rioja agriculture , made shipments of seasonal vegetables to its customers. “In La Rioja the orchard exudes vitality offering its famous vegetables, its first asparagus... A tribute to the rural world , to the small farmers who these days due to the closure of the catering establishments also need our support”. In this way, they managed to make confinement more bearable and move, for a few moments, to the beauty and stillness of the landscapes of La Rioja.
From where else?
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO CONSUME LOCAL AND SEASONAL?
First, let's talk about its benefits. For it White Entrecanales gives us the keys. “ Consuming seasonal fruit and vegetables boosts the local economy , helping small businesses, which now need it so much. It also boosts our immune system, as nature is wise and knows what our bodies need in each season."
Nature is wise: “In winter we need more doses of vitamin C to strengthen the immune system, and for that nature offers us oranges, grapefruit, peppers, tangerines, cauliflower or kiwis and in summer foods that contain more water , such as watermelon, melon or pear and richer in beta-carotene to protect the skin, such as pumpkin, melon, carrot and mango. In addition, local fruit and vegetables are harvested at their optimum point of ripeness and are much tastier than those that are going to be transported, which are harvested green and artificially ripened in containers.”
Consume seasonally, help the planet . And last but not least, helps reduce energy and CO2 emissions , since it is not necessary to spend so much energy for transportation and also avoids the implementation of intensive monocultures that deplete the land, favoring the sustainability of the planet.”
Wellness. Quality of life. Taste. Caring for ecosystems... There are so many and such good reasons!
AND WHAT CAN I DO? HOW AND WHY TO BET ON SEASONAL VEGETABLES AT HOME?
From the field to your home in 24 hours . This is how Vegetables from Navarra works. It is a family business located in the Riverside of Navarre . They produce in Peralta and have 150 hectares dedicated to 100% organic vegetables . In addition to their farm store in the same warehouse, they work with online sales. On its website you can get organic seasonal vegetables and fruits and clean vegetables, ready to eat. Artichokes, asparagus, Swiss chard, borage, asparagus, leeks, peas, broad beans... A whole festival of the best of the Navarrese countryside, which in less than 24 hours reaches any point in Spain.
Dehesa the Miracle sells at physical outlets such as El Corte Inglés or its own stall at the Mercado de La Paz, but he also does it online . This organic farm, which only works with seasonal products, bets on seasonal baskets in different sizes. With this ecological basket, you will receive freshly harvested products at home with** fruit and vegetables, eggs and meat or chicken from your farm**. They also sell products such as white asparagus, red cabbage, red chard, tomatoes, endives, broad beans... And they have just launched their range of dishes prepared with recipes such as organic artichokes with ham , beetroot hummus or vegetable chickpea burgers, among others.
“The field cannot stop” . And that is why La Huerta de Carabaña launches its online store, to buy seasonal vegetables and fruits, as well as legumes and olive oil. In a period of 24/48 hours and at the moment, only in the Madrid's community They bring home an extensive variety that includes vegetables such as spinach, broccoli, green Malaga pepper, pumpkin, green beans, clean leek...
The Garden of Aranjuez It has establishments in several points of the Community of Madrid, but now they are launching online commerce. Through Whatsapp you can order in Madrid capital or in the south of the province, artichokes, spring onions, asparagus, bimi, purple snow peas... And others that are more difficult to find, such as white aubergine, yellow courgette or purple cauliflower. . And although we are talking about vegetables, other must-sees in this store, are the strawberries of Aranjuez . Pure natural candy.
Fruits and vegetables at home
To enjoy the products of the Valencian garden at home , the proposal is Som Natur. In 2010 they coined their motto 'From L'Horta to la Porta' and today, with their crops located in Benaguasil and Manises They have managed to have a huge plantation of seasonal fruit and vegetables. Lettuce, radishes, potatoes, tomatoes, kale, broad beans, spring onion or artichokes from the Valencian countryside, at your home at the click of a button.
Not far from there in Villena, north of Alicante , there is a family cooperative dedicated to a unique crop, that of asparagus and olives. Is named Green Asparagus and is a favorite of many chefs and restaurants. Over there, Carlos Camanes , grows different varieties such as purple, heroic green, thick green asparagus and asparagus of supreme quality, thanks to the red clay soils that the plantation has. Another of his star products is olive juice, which they make on the branch, unfiltered and with olives of the Arbequina variety, rich in vitamin D and polyphenols . Placing an order for Whatsapp to 695 79 50 12 , you can also have them at home.
And if we talk about preserves? We can also consume these seasonal vegetables in this format. For it The Cathedral of Navarra is the best . They have experienced all the problems of the countryside, added to the fact that a good part of the fresh product they sell, they do to the hotel industry itself. Everything collected in the field this season is already packaged and the quality of its preserves is unmatched. Their asparagus, baby broad beans or artichokes are to cry. In addition, they have something clear. Cayo Martínez, owner of the canning company founded by his grandmother, asks that “At this time when national producers have been measuring up, working, risking, putting in hours , all that has been necessary so that the food chain has not been broken, the only thing we ask is that when normality returns, don't forget us”. And we promise not to.