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Nearly 80 Canarian companies and the seven Cabidos promote their agricultural and agri-food productions at the stand provided by the Government of the Canary Islands
Canarian products premium are the protagonists of the extensive program of activities that the Government of the Canary Islands has organized within the framework of 39º Gourmets Salon, considered, along with Alimentaria, the most relevant professional event in the high-end food and beverage sector, which is celebrated from Monday 13 of April, and until Thursday, at IFEMA, In Madrid. Among the new features of this edition, the celebration of the I Mexican Taco Championship, organized by the Canarian Executive to show the excellence of the Canary avocado, fruit protected from the 2025 by the IGP quality seal.
Nearly 80 Canarian companies and the seven Cabildos will exhibit and promote their agricultural and agri-food productions during these four days at the stand that the Government of the Canary Islands, through the Canarian Institute of Agri-Food Quality (ICCA), Rural Environment Management (GMR Canarias) y Proexca, with the collaboration of the General Directorate of Fisheries, has arranged at this event, for which an extensive program of promotional actions has been planned such as live cooking demonstrations, tastings, valorization workshops, commented tastings, presentations and training actions, among which stands out the “Canary Islands Day”, a proposal that focuses on the fishing productions of the Islands and the volcanic character of the gastronomy of the Archipelago.
After the inauguration of this event, the Minister of Agriculture, Cattle raising, Fisheries and Food Sovereignty, Narvay Quintero, highlighted that this fair, “It constitutes a great opportunity to consolidate the presence of the Islands' differentiated quality products in foreign markets., which forms part of the regional Executive's policies to promote and support the marketing of these productions aimed at ensuring the stability of the primary sector and promoting its growth., with an active search for new markets and strengthening its positioning in those where we are already present”.
For your part, the director of the ICCA, Luis Arraez Guadalupe, He referred to the quality and uniqueness of Canarian products, “increasingly valued inside and outside our borders, as demonstrated by the numerous recognitions obtained in international contests and competitions and the sales that our producers make abroad.”. “That is why on this occasion we have gathered at the stand Canary Islands a wide representation of the agricultural and agri-food sector of the Canary Islands such as wines, cheeses, almogrotes, mojos, remembered, extra virgin olive oils, sea salts, jams, aloe vera and dehydrated banana, among other new and innovative elaborations, as is the case of a craft beer made with aloe Lanzarote and that has the ecological product certificate, all of this with the purpose of opening the doors of our gastronomic culture to the rest of the world and offering our commercial opportunities to Canarian companies.”, he added.
So, throughout the four days, this exhibition module, with a surface of 528 Square meters, will host around twenty workshops organized by Cabildos, Regulatory Councils and producers, coordinated by ICCA.
In the first session, the CEO of GMR Canarias met, Juan Antonio Alonso; the general director of Fisheries of the Government of the Canary Islands, Esteban Reyes; the president of the Cabildo of Lanzarote, Oswaldo Betancort; the counselors of the Primary Sector of the Cabildo of Tenerife, La Gomera and Fuerteventura, Valentín González, Noelia Morales and Enrique Pérez, respectively; the Minister of Economic Development of the Cabildo of Gran Canaria, Minerva Alonso, and the Tourism Minister, Transport and Communications of the Cabildo of El Hierro, Maria del Mar Suarez.
The Canary Islands avocado, hero
One of the star actions of the extensive program of proposals organized by the regional Executive in Gourmets has been the I Mexican Taco Championship by IGP Aguacate de Canarias, “Tacomania”, aimed at positioning this Canarian fruit with Protected Geographical Indication as a reference ingredient in contemporary gastronomy. Daniel Martinez, from the Tatemado restaurant in Madrid, y Salvador Mergal, of the CIFP Santa María de Guía, They have achieved first and second place respectively in the contest, sponsored by ICCA, to value this production, and which was preceded by two presentations titled “IGP Aguacate de Canarias: importance and value of its registration” and “Differentiating excellences of the IGP Aguacate de Canarias”, offered by the ICCA and the management body of the PGI Aguacate de Canarias, Tropican. During these talks the historical introduction of the crop was discussed., its adaptation to the island environment and the varieties protected along with its organoleptic characteristics and, besides, a commented tasting of the product was offered.
The tournament was attended by six professional chefs selected nationally and a jury made up of six specialists. (the president of the managing body of the IGP, Francisco José Echandi, the managing director of Tropican, Nicolas Mendez, the chef of the San Sebastián restaurant 57, Alberto González Margallo, gastronomic advisor Rita Sánchez, the cook of Tavern Errante, Elena Vega, the chef of the Chiribita restaurant, Balo Ortiz, and the CEO of the Group Ágatha Ruíz de la Prada, Tristan Ramirez). With a first prize of 1.500 euros and a second of 1.000 euros, in addition to accrediting diplomas and gifts from the IGP, This contest has had the objective of choosing the taco that best integrates this island production, valuing aspects such as creativity, the technique, taste and speed of execution. The participating chefs were Boris Payan (of Valletta), Daniel Martinez (de Tatemado), Ileana Vazquez (from Los Mandilones), Miguel Ángel Expósito (from Retama), Rosa Monserrate Muñoz (by Xamach) and Salvador Melgar (of the CIFP Santa María de Guía).
Beyond the contest, The participation of five Canarian cheeses that aspire to become the best in Spain within the framework of GourmetQuesos also stands out., the championship that is celebrated in the context of this Hall. A tasting panel made up of 40 specialists will select the best products from each category and determine which of them will achieve this distinction. Don Nicolas, from Finca de Uga (Lanzarote), in the category of Cow Cured Pasteurized Milk; Cured pajonales and semi-cured Media flor, by Manuel Hernández Bolaños (Gran Canaria), in the categories of raw milk cured goat and semi-cured mixture, respectively; Aged cow/goat mix with gofio, from Quesería Montesdeoca (Tenerife), in Mix-cured mode; and finally, Las Cuevas Cheese, by Félix Alberto Gil de Rodríguez (The Palm) in the Smoked, have been classified among the 100 best preparations in the country and compete in the final of said contest.
Apart from these activities, GMR Canarias will develop two actions aimed at making Canarian agricultural and agri-food production visible. The first, which will take place this afternoon, It is the third edition of the Meeting of Canarian wine ambassadors, promoted by the Association of Canarian Sommeliers and Tasters. This event will allow participating professionals to update their knowledge, taste new references and strengthen your connection with the wine identity of the Canary Islands, with the guidance of experts Ana Angélica Hernández and Nuria España. On the other hand, on Wednesday 15 The “Tropical Mood” workshop will be held: from the tropical countryside to artisanal ice cream”, where the Finca La Cantora and Viveros La Cosma projects will be presented with the participation of the pastry chef from Boutiques Relieve, Alfredo Marrero.
Besides, Tomorrow “Canary Islands Day” will be celebrated, a day with five activities that under the title of “Volcanic Gastronomy: discover the flavor of the Canary Islands”, invites you to explore the uniqueness of island cuisine and the diversity of local productions with special attention to fishing products. The proposals are “From the sea of the Canary Islands to the table”, by the chef from San Sebastián 57, Alberto González Margallo; “A look at the Canary Islands sea from Kamezi”, offered by chef Rubén Cuesta, both organized by GMR Canarias through Volcanic Xperience; “Lanzarote: science fiction in a glass, led by the Island Council and with the participation of sommelier Ferrán Centelles and the Lanzarote Wine Regulatory Council; "Canary Islands: 7 islands, 7 wines”, ICCA initiative directed by the vice president of CERVIM, Manuel Capote; and the second edition of “Wines and chocolates from the Canary Islands, “a volcanic pairing”, also organized by GMR and which has the participation of the pastry master from 24 ounces, Carmen Capote, and the communicator and sommelier Meritxell Falgueras.
