The new agri-food cooperatives take centre stage in the first of the 'BCN Smart Rural Stories,' a series of short films created to give voice to the individuals leading the way towards a healthier and more sustainable agri-food system in the province of Barcelona.

The first short film of the season is entitled 'Calm Strenght' and aims to make visible the new associative models in the agri-food sector that are currently being promoted in the region. The video stars Marc Talavera, president of the Eixarcolant collective, a cooperative entity based in Jorba; Francesc Molins, president of Som Pastura, an association of livestock farmers in Moianès; and the coordinator of the Central Catalonia Cooperative Atheneum, Alba Rojas, who explains the importance of «establishing networks between producers and agro-food artisans to have a greater voice, share distribution channels and generate synergies».

This BCN Smart Rural production with the collaboration of Bas TV has been possible thanks to the co-financing of the Barcelona Provincial Council and the FEDER funds of the European Union. Directed by Valentí Roda, the producer wanted to put the personal stories behind the political actions at the centre of the audiovisual piece: «We wanted to transfer the importance and benefits of BCN Smart Rural to a close and tangible narrative framework, pull it from a personal story and translate the data into words». Words that «have not been agreed or scripted, but come from the hearts of the people who speak. The actions of the project hide exciting human stories and we have focused ourselves on showing them», added director David Fontseca.

About the new BCN Smart Rural cooperative models

Promoting new cooperative models is one of the priority actions of BCN Smart Rural, the strategy of the Barcelona Provincial Council to transform the agri-food sector of the region. Specifically, the aim is to encourage the employment of entrepreneurial people, unemployed or at risk of exclusion through the establishment of agri-food and forestry associations on a cooperative basis. To achieve this, it collaborates with the Association of Rural Initiatives of Catalonia (ARCA), town councils and local entities that want to go beyond traditional agricultural cooperatives and promote a social and solidarity economy.

The services offered within the framework of BCN Smart Rural include advice and support for initiatives interested in developing this alternative economic model. Among the resources available are support in the creation of the business plan, the elaboration of the communication strategy, the commercial and logistics planning and even the sustainable design of the farms.

For more information on the new BCN Smart Rural cooperative models, please contact agrosocial@arca-dr.cat.

— BCN Smart Rural Editorial —