- Zuriñe Vigalondo Otsoa and her daughter Maitane Beltrán de Guevara are behind Álava’s Ekotarriko project. Vigalondo's son makes an organic vegetable garden in Zuhatzu-Kuartango, while her husband reared oxen in the ecological model. “The aim was to take advantage of the surpluses of their productions when we started the project in 2015,” the Alavés explains. These "surpluses" would have been prepared in the kitchen and preserved in glass containers, which would give them a new opportunity to market their products. Since then, the surpluses of the baserritars in the area have also been seized. They say it's like a "clean spot" so that food isn't wasted and that in every county there should be one of them.
The old resort of Zuhatzu-Kuartango becomes a janitor
Vigalondo and daughter were left without a place to transform the products produced by their son and her husband, and they contacted the City Hall to discuss whether something could be done in the village. At that time they met with an unused old resort and reached an agreement with the City Hall: the members of Ekotarro would make an investment of machinery for the elaboration of preserves and, in return, the City Hall would allow them to use the building for a while.
In 2015, mothers and daughters began to pack foods with homemade products: chickpeas with chorizo, meatballs, pea meat, vegetable pesto, tomato, vegetables and fruit tarrites for children... At that time, fifteen different dishes were embarked. In 2016, they moved from one trade fair to another to publicize their packaged organic products and get customers.
Lur Araba Project
In 2017, the Alavés project received a subsidy from the Basque Government and the European Funds, and if until then it was only used to transform products produced by households, it also began to provide this service to producers in the area. “Producers often do not have the means or knowledge to make the conserves with the necessary permits and to make the full labelling. Thanks to this aid, we had time to offer this service to more than thirty Algerian producers.” They hired the cook, and with their surpluses they made preserves.
Vigalondo says that the Lur Araba project is a kind of "clean point" of vegetables: “The primary sector generates perishable foods, but when converted into preserves, they last a long time. That’s why I say that in every county there should be a transformation center of this kind.” In 2019, the subsidy for the start-up of the Lur Araba project was finalised and no new producers have been incorporated into the Ekotarri area. Over the years, however, work continues with those who have participated in the project.