Food project, run by IbizaPreservation, highlights need to support local farmers and producers through Covid-19 crisis
Ibiza, 28 April 2020 – Ibiza Produce, an initiative of the foundation IbizaPreservation, has launched a new campaign to promote consumption of local products through the Covid-19 lockdown period and beyond. With the crisis facing the island’s food producers in mind, the project is running a weekly giveaway of local produce, in order to inspire Ibiza residents to change their shopping habits and eat local wherever possible.
The campaign aims to publicise the range of homegrown and homemade products on offer in Ibiza, with a view to supporting local farmers and producers, many of whom are facing a drastic cut in revenues due to the closure of hotels and restaurants and the curtailment or even cancellation of this year’s tourist season.
“In any normal year, this is the time when farmers are starting to gear up for the summer season, with the first crops being harvested and sold to the restaurant trade,” said Gabrielle Gambina, coordinator of Ibiza Produce. “By focusing our consumption on local seasonal produce, we can ensure this fantastic array of healthy fruit and vegetables doesn’t go to waste, whilst also helping the island’s farmers weather the current economic storm.”
Around 98% of the food consumed on Ibiza is imported. In the past three decades, the advent of tourism has led to a massive decline in the island’s once booming agricultural sector; according to recent data from the Balearic Government, only 11% of land was given over to farming in 2019.
Boosting local agricultural capacity and thereby regenerating and protecting the island’s landscapes is a key long-term objective of Ibiza Produce, which hopes to achieve this in part by increasing demand for so-called “KM0” products.
“If we can encourage people to adopt new eating habits and choose local produce during this crisis, we also open up the possibility of changing shopping patterns into the future,” said Sandra Benbeniste, Executive Director of IbizaPreservation. “The goal is to try to increase our consumption level up from 2%, to bring the island in line with the regional average of 15% across the whole Balearics.”
The competition, which is running on the ibizaproduce.org website and across the project’s social media channels, offers the chance to win a prize by signing up to Ibiza Produce news and updates. Ibiza Produce has come together with its network of island suppliers to offer a different prize every week through the lockdown. They will include: hampers of local products from Green Delivery Ibiza and Ibiza Delivers; organic fruit and vegetable boxes from Tierra de Ibiza and BioFarm Ibiza; cheese from Granja Artina; kimchi, kombucha and other fermented items from Los Fermentistas; fresh roasted coffee from Meke; and a grown-your-own kit from Ibiza Microgreens. More prizes will be announced in the coming weeks.
Additionally, Ibiza Produce has developed a special web page to help residents keen to find local produce. The “Lockdown Directory”, which can be found at ibizaproduce.org/compralocalibiza, gives contact information and opening hours for food markets, farms and artisan producers.
It also includes a section detailing businesses offering home delivery, such as Green Delivery Ibiza and Ibiza Delivers, both of which have launched online supermarkets with a local products range in response to the Covid-19 crisis. The two companies have additionally committed to donating €1 per order to IbizaPreservation, to support the foundation in its work to promote local agriculture.
