SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, July 30 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The president of the Cabildo de Tenerife, Pedro Martín, and the mayor of El Tanque, María Esther Morales, inaugurated this Saturday the XXV edition of Threshing Day, together with the island councilor for Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, Javier Parrilla. Through this event, which was attended by hundreds of farmers, ranchers and visitors, it is intended to promote the promotion and recovery of cereals, traditional cultivars in the Canary Islands.
Pedro Martín assured that this event is “an opportunity to recover our traditions and to reconcile with our past, because it helps us to remember what our history is and the value that everyone who came before us has had.”
In the president’s opinion, “now that it seems that everything important comes from abroad, it is necessary more than ever to value how much and good we have in Tenerife”.
The mayor of El Tanque, María Esther Morales, pointed out, for her part, that “for all the tankers and tankers, it is a pride to resume this cultural activity of ethnographic rescue that is so important for the municipality. It has been two very hard years of pandemic , but I think we are on the path to recovery and today’s celebration is proof of that”.
During his speech, Javier Parrilla emphasized the importance of “fostering the promotion and recovery of local varieties of cereals, legumes and forage crops on the island, which represent a treasure of incalculable value, so that, little by little, they are displacing to products from abroad”, and recalled that “with these crops, biodiversity, customs and traditions associated with them are also benefited and protected”.
At the end of the act, Esther Morales presented various distinctions to representatives of various groups of farmers and farmers; to Juan Antonio Peraza, promoter of this event since its creation in 1995; and to the Cabildo de Tenerife, for its continuous support in the development of this event.
Throughout the day there are planned, among other activities, an exhibition of traditional games (stick game or Canarian wrestling), plowing and sowing, a display of livestock and craft products (cheese, honey, gofio, meringues, mojos or wines) and several exhibitions and stands.
As in previous campaigns, ACETE organizes the harvest of the cereal in the northwest of the island, which is where this cultivar is concentrated. More specifically in the municipalities of El Tanque, Buenavista del Norte, San Juan de la Rambla, Los Realejos and La Orotava.
In 2021, the total production of cereals in the northwest of Tenerife reached 47,480 kilos, which is more than double the amount harvested in 2020 (22,710 kilos). Wheat of the barbilla variety was the most cultivated cereal, with 36,945 kilos, followed by triticale (5,220 kilos), rye (3,215 kilos), barley (2,100 kilos) and oats (500 kilos). For this year, total production is expected to equal or exceed that of 2021.
The event was also attended by the island councilor for Employment and Socioeconomic Development, Carmen Luz; the insular director of Agriculture, Cayetano Silva; the president of the Isla Baja Consortium, José Gregorio Pérez Medina, councilors of the El Tanque City Council, and other authorities.
