This week, Slow Living is excited to bring listeners a taste of Spain, broadcasting from the iconic Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco. We welcome our Spanish guests as they share their story, a glimpse of their region, and the wonderful products they have introduced to the US market. We also welcome Jeffrey Shaw, of the Spanish Trade Commission, ICEX, to share an overview of Spain, and Christine Weiss, from Culinary Collective whose company is responsible in bringing these marvelous products to our doors. Sit back and dream your way to Spain!
Jeffrey Shaw
ICEX
Spain is well known,
among other things, for its excellent quality of life, the open-minded
character of its people and the wealth of opportunities on offer, both in the
fields of education and culture and in the worlds of sport and leisure.
It comes as no surprise
that Spain has been ranked among the top world list of tourist destinations,
not only in terms of visitor numbers but also in terms of revenues
generated.
Spain’s appeal for foreign
investors lies not only in its domestic market, with 46.8 million potential
consumers and a further injection from around 65 million tourists who flock to
the country each year, but also in the possibility of operating in
third-country markets using Spain as a base.
This is thanks to Spain’s privileged geostrategic position: it is a member of
the European Union and serves as a gateway to the North of Africa and Latin
America, due the country’s strong economic, historic and cultural ties with the
latter.
Blanxart Chocolates, located in
region of Catalonia, Spain, produces over 100
types of pralines and chocolates, each with its own personality and flavor,
using traditional recipes and hand-made processes. Blanxart selects their own
cocoa beans from Ecuador, Brazil, Cameroon, The Ivory Coast and Guinea, and then
roasts them to ensure the right blend, aroma and texture. The finished products
are 100% natural and 100% delicious.
In 1954 three brothers got together to produce chocolate
with the belief that manufacturing chocolate is an art form. The company is still
run on that hard and fast rule by the sons of the original founders.
Traditional recipes, years of experience and an unfaltering attention to detail
has made the Blanxart name a symbol of quality.
Everyone that works at Blanxart seems to be part of one
big family. Or maybe its just that being enveloped by a cloud of chocolate when
you walk into the workshop makes everything seem so wonderful! The love of
creating chocolate as an art is infused into each yummy morsel.
Veronica Escuer
Paul & Pippa is a young company
established with the objective of bringing fun and quirky biscuits to the
market that reflect Mediterranean flavors and healthful ingredients. All of the
products are made by hand in small batches using certified organic ingredients,
sourced from small producers.
In keeping with the owners’ principles, the company
contributes monthly to Doctors without Borders and to Smiles of Bombay. They
also participate in pro-bono marketing campaigns for Pere Tarres Foundation and
the Make a Wish Foundation of Spain.
These thin, sweet and pleasantly quirky biscuits come in
four unique flavors; Cocoa & Salt (Cocoa Chips), Lime (Lime After Time),
Apple Cinnamon (Me & Grandma), and Coconut (Coconut Valley).
Anna Vilaseca
Aneto
Aneto has been curing Serrrano hams and other charcuterie
in the region of Cataluña for over 40 years. Making natural home-style broths
from their Serrano hams was a natural extension. Today Aneto produces a wide
variety of broths and cooking bases for paellas. The Paella broths combine the Aneto
fresh broths with finely cut vegetable, seafood and/or meat.
Rosa Vañó
Castillo de Canena
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| Rosa with her brother Paco |
Castillo de Canena, a family owned business, takes its name from
the family castle nestled in the hills of the township of Canena, in Spain’s
Jaen province in the region of Andalusia, the largest olive producing region in the
world. The company’s olive producing history dates back to 1780.
Since 1780, the Castillo de Canena estate has been
producing exceptional oils in the Guadalquivir Valley of Andalusia in the south
of Spain. This Picual oil has been produced using strict Biodynamic processes
and standards, including producing their own organic fertilizer through
composting, incorporating beehives and sheep into the olive groves, and using
crushed quartz in place of copper on the fields.
Biodynamic agriculture is a step beyond Organic farming
method. It is founded on the harmonization between the different forces that
govern nature: seasons, atmospheric phenomena, lunar cycles and the position of
the constellations in the cosmos. Biodynamic agriculture seeks a comprehensive
balance of soil, trees, animals and humanity.
Nine precision agricultural weather
stations control variations in the diameter of the tree trunks, the
climatological conditions, the soil and humidity in the area with a view to
optimizing water resources available for irrigation. The electric power needed
to run the orchard is obtained by onsite solar energy plants and all prunings
are used for biomass. In addition, Castillo de Canena is the first Integrated
Producer of olive oil capable of monitoring its carbon footprint.
Christine Weiss
Culinary Collective
Based in Lynnwood, Washington, Culinary Collective is an
import and distribution company specializing in gourmet cultural foods that
embody and promote native cultures and traditions. The company works with small
family and community companies that take pride in producing all-natural foods
using methods and recipes passed down through the generations. Under its Matiz
España label, Culinary Collective imports and distributes an extensive line of
traditional products from Spain. Under its Zócalo Gourmet brand, the Collective
supports small-scale producers of all-natural cultural foods in Peru by bringing
quality products such as grains, flours, beans and chili pastes direct from the
producers to US and Canadian retailers and consumers.
