LA OROTAVA (TENERIFE), 4 (EUROPA PRESS)
The Minister for Social Rights, Consumption, and Agenda 2023, Pablo Bustinduy, alongside the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, and Food Sovereignty for the Canary Islands Government, Narvay Quintero, visited CEIP La Luz in the Tenerife municipality of La Orotava this Friday. Their objective was to gain a comprehensive understanding of the Canary Islands Eco-eaters Programme, an initiative endorsed by the Canary Islands Executive which, over ten years, has become a standard for other autonomous communities such as the Basque Country, Navarra, and Valencia due to its focus on healthy food in schools using organic produce.
Since its inception in 2013, ‘Ecocomedores’ has concentrated on providing menus composed of organic, fresh, and seasonal ingredients in schools throughout the Canary Islands. This initiative promotes the consumption of local produce and raises awareness within the educational community regarding the significance of a balanced diet.
From an agricultural perspective, the project aims to foster ecological production on the islands, thereby strengthening the primary sector and establishing a sustainable rural development model centred around the local consumption of ‘zero-kilometre friendly’ products. This information was highlighted in a communiqué from the Canary Islands Executive.
During the visit, the minister asserted that his department is developing a Royal Decree that will ensure “every child and adolescent has the right to healthy, high-quality food, irrespective of their family’s economic circumstances or their place of birth, whilst also promoting local and seasonal production.”
He further stated that the Ecocomedores de Canarias programme “still has a significant journey ahead and should serve as a guide to ensure that the primary sector underpins this sustainable diet.”
Narvay Quintero expressed gratitude to the Spanish Government representative for his visit and his interest in “a pioneering initiative that intertwines healthy eating with products sourced from the primary sector, characterised by ‘kilometre zero’, ensuring maximum quality and freshness.”
“The success of this programme, which has gained national and international recognition, is attributable to the dedication of producers, families, kitchen and dining staff, teachers, and management teams. It represents an initiative that serves as a model for some regions and could be replicated across the rest of Spain,” he added.
In attendance were the president of the Tenerife Cabildo, Rosa Dávila; the mayor of La Orotava, Francisco Linares; the Deputy Minister of Education for the Canary Islands, José Manuel Cabrera; the director of CEIP La Luz, María Andrea Hernández; the general director of Public Health for the Ministry of Health, José Díaz-Flores Estévez; the director of the Canarian Institute of Agri-Food Quality (ICCA), Luis Arráez Guadalupe; the general director of Centre Administration, Schooling, and Supplementary Services, David Crego Chaves; and the inspector general of Education, Felipe Cordero.
This initiative, resulting from collaboration between the ministries of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, and Food Sovereignty and of Education, Vocational Training, Physical Activity, and Sports, with the support of Health, is spearheaded by the Canarian Institute of Agri-Food Quality (ICCA).
MORE THAN 23,000 DINERS
This programme benefits over 23,000 diners and is structured around a regional network composed of 105 eco-farmers and 172 participating entities, of which 168 are educational establishments (163 public) and four are non-school private initiatives.
From the current academic year onwards, ‘Ecocomedores’ will be available in all public schools on the islands that have directly managed canteens, as well as in those that are indirectly managed where requests are made.
In this regard, all participating centres in ‘Ecocomedores’ will optimise their consumption of organic, local, and seasonal products in accordance with nutritional guidelines and following a framework that prioritises, above all, local production from each island.
The production process prohibits the usage of chemically synthesised fertilisers, pesticides, food additives, or genetically modified organisms, with products required to have quality certification and adhere to food safety standards for such productions.
The programme, recognised at the state level such as with the XIX Andrés Núñez de Prado National Awards, operates through a participatory system organised in technical tables dedicated to optimising cooperation among the various sectors involved: management teams, teaching staff, kitchen staff, dining personnel, families, and eco-farmers.
Consequently, efforts are being made to organise the organic subsector to enhance visibility for organic producers and dignify their work; to organise the supply of these products to facilitate access at fair prices; and to incorporate these foods into school and social health canteens, thereby improving food quality and the health of diners while promoting awareness of how consumption directly impacts the environment.
CEIP LA LUZ
This Tenerife school, which will host 210 students in the 2024/25 academic year, was selected to pilot the ‘Vegefruti’ initiative, developed within the framework of ‘Ecocomedores’ to encourage the intake of organic, local, and seasonal products in the dining rooms of primary schools through educational and recreational activities, carried out both in the dining area and in the classroom, focusing on introducing students to the “superpowers” of fruits, vegetables, and greens.
This CEIP also takes part in another project sponsored by the Canarian Government, the Fruit and Vegetable Plan in schools, a European initiative that promotes consumption among children through the distribution of these products in educational centres and supplementary activities that are held both within and outside of school hours.
