In the framework of the ANATOLE project, CAAC coordinator, Tamara Guirao, was visiting Vigo in the first week of October, so as to explore, together with Lorient City and the European NGO “Blue Fish”, the possibilities of short delivery chains concerning fisheries and the role that cities may play.
As an NGO composed by the private sector, the fisheries’ organisations, environmental NGO’s and the local authorities, Blue Fish can serve as a vector for the principles of the ANATOLE project. In the agenda, a meeting with the European Agency for Fisheries and a top meeting with Galician enterprises with the French Minister for Fisheries and the Regional Councillor of Galicia.
One of the main conclusions was that the link between local economy and fisheries is possible, but it depends on several factors:
– The product itself and its uses / needs transformation: eg sardine vs Saint Jacques shell
– The local culture (consumption of fishery products, the existence of “food festivals”, etc.)
– The organization of producers (fishermen, fishmongers, etc. …)
– The survival of local markets and the desire of hospitality to buy local.
This link may not be applied to the entire Atlantic area, but some areas are really conducive to such initiatives.
ANATOLE opens paths to create a global economy run by Atlantic cities, leaving them the choice of products. For reasons of efficiency and visibility, the project works on agriculture, but nothing prevents a local economy for another product, the principles and methods established by ANATOLE are still valid.
