The year 2020 has been hard, yes, but we cannot deny that it has left us beautiful projects and initiatives. One of them is the Ekomerkatua, born in Pamplona on the eve of the lockdown. “We started it in March; we did it before the lockdown and it was a great success,” said Ana Bados Blanco, head of the project. The first Saturday of each month is held in Geltoki, the old bus station, and although the coronavirus caused the suspension of the April one, they have been restarted since May. Despite the difficulties, the Organic Agricultural Production Council of Navarre and INTIA have come to the capital to stop the permanent trade fair they drive.

Response to the inter-annual demand of producers

The existence of a permanent market in the centre of Pamplona has been a demand of producers for years. “Ecomerkado has managed to offer organic producers in Navarre a fixed space for the sale of their products in the city centre.” Seeing that in the last decades the relationship between the city and the rural environment is crumbling, the objective of the drivers is to recover this link and offer space. And all this at a fair price for both the producer and the consumer.

It is also intended to create a meeting point for farmers and farmers: “Often, producers do not have a space to get to know each other and collaborate with each other.” The challenge has been to create a meeting point between associations and people working on agroecology and food sovereignty. For example, every month an association is invited to position itself in the market to make its work known.

Eco-friendly yes, but not any “eco-friendly”

Since the market is in place, they have around twenty permanent producers participating each month, and many others varying according to the time of the year. “The seal of organic production is necessary to participate in the fair, but it is also very important for us that food be from here; the priority is small producers and those who live from it.” In the case of persons engaged in the processing of foodstuffs, they must comply with the requirement for the use of products from Navarra.

The buyer can leave the Ecomerkado with the full basket: olive oil, sausages, fruit, nuts, eggs, dairy, legumes, jam, honey, bread, pasta, truffles, fresh vegetables, wine, yoghurt, cheese… is a varied offer. Although the year of the beginning of the fair was somewhat erratic, Bados was satisfied with the response received and assured that the producers are happy to maintain this type of spaces in the current situation. I hope that the coming years will be more tender than this first year for e-marketing and local producers.