The “Saborear o Algarve” brand has been presented in Faro in the presence of primary producers and food processors willing to promote local production and consumption in the region, through sustainable practices.

“What we want with this brand is to group these small producers, but not just the small ones, also the large ones, using the strength of the Algarve brand itself”, said the vice-president of the Algarve Regional Coordination and Development Commission (CCDR) responsible for agriculture, Pedro Valadas Monteiro.

The new brand will be for the exclusive use of the Algarve Local Producers Network (RPLA) and will function as a “factor of differentiation, affirmation and valorisation of the products produced”, he added.

“What we want now is, in practice, to create a ‘pool’ of various products, from various producers, coming from various regions of the Algarve, and to be able to formalise something that until now has operated in a very fragmented, disjointed way”, stated the person in charge.

The project financed by European aid funds is promoted by a partnership of entities led by the University of Algarve, which also includes, among others, the Algarve Intermunicipal Community (AMAL), the Algarve CCDR and the Vila Real de Santo António Hotel and Tourism School.

“When a producer joins, he is obliged to respect a specification booklet, particularly in terms of issues such as quality and good agricultural practices,” said Pedro Valadas Monteiro.

The objective in this initial phase of the project is to reach at least 100 associated producers.

“But above all, what we want is for this project to continue and be carried out by the producers themselves, by the associations themselves, when its execution period ends”, explained the vice-president of CCDR Algarve.

On the other hand, there will be “a guarantee seal” so that the end consumer has “the guarantee of what they are buying” and that “production follows the rules”.

“Nowadays, there are many labels and sometimes it is complicated, but this approach is different, it is aimed not at supermarkets, but more at school canteens, and similar entities” in the region, said one of the producers present at the launch of the new brand, Luís Silva, from Quinta do Freixo.

This producer also highlighted that this project would “shorten” the current distribution circuits and bring consumers closer to producers in the region.