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A few days ago, we hosted at the San Crispín Cooking Classroom the presentation of the initial conclusions of a study that we have been developing during the first months of the year regarding the Agroecological Distribution Centre project. This is a project we are working on at San Crispín and one we have already mentioned to you on previous occasions. It was an intense working session, and the results have given us many clues about the direction we should take. Now we want to share it with you, because you are a fundamental part of this project.
First of all: what is a CAD?
CAD stands for Agroecological Distribution Centre. Put simply, it would be a space and an organisation designed to help farmers and producers on the island deliver their products to customers, without each of them having to do it individually and in isolation.
Imagine it like this: right now, a farmer growing tomatoes in Alaior has to harvest them, pack them, load them into a vehicle, drive around restaurants and shops delivering them, and then return to the farm. This can take between 30 and 35 hours a week — hours that are not spent producing. The CAD would be the structure responsible for handling part of this work collectively and more efficiently.
Why has the San Crispín Cooperative promoted this study?
Because we believe Menorca has quality products, committed producers and people like you who want to consume locally and consciously. What is missing is the infrastructure that connects everything together.
To find out whether a CAD is viable, we first needed to listen to producers. This work is being carried out with the support and funding of the Daniel and Nina Carasso Foundation, which has allowed us to hire a person dedicated to this task. The project is also part of the Alliance for an Agroecological Menorca, a civic and organisational movement that San Crispín has joined in order to help transform the island’s food system into one that is more sustainable, sovereign and conscious.
What have we done so far?
Between January and March this year, we carried out 21 interviews with producers from across the island, including vegetable growers, livestock farmers, cheesemakers, wine producers, fruit growers, olive producers and many others. These are the main conclusions we have drawn.
What have producers told us?
There is a great deal of variety and quality. Most producers work in organic farming or follow good agroecological practices. They produce vegetables, fruit, meat, goat cheese, yoghurts, artisan ice cream, xeixa wheat flour, local rice, wine and much more. Altogether, the offer could cover the whole year, but the main problem is distribution.
Direct distribution to customers and shops is the dominant model among producers. Why? Because they believe doing it themselves is more profitable and because they highly value the direct relationship with their customers. However, they also recognise that managing distribution themselves takes a great deal of time and money, and these costs are often not reflected in the final price.
Seasonality also complicates matters. During the summer, tourism causes demand to soar and sometimes there is not enough product available. In winter, the opposite happens: there are surpluses that cannot find buyers. Shared planning could help balance this situation significantly.
Producers are open to the CAD, but with conditions. Sixteen out of the twenty-one producers interviewed said they would be willing to increase production if the CAD became operational. However, they highlighted three essential conditions: proving that the project is viable, ensuring transparency and professional management, and guaranteeing fair prices that allow producers to make a decent living.
What happens next?
This first phase aimed to understand the reality faced by producers. The second stage is now beginning and will focus on studying consumption patterns and possible sales channels for a CAD. The aim is to analyse whether the business model is sustainable and how the CAD should be organised in order to function effectively.
As a member of the San Crispín Cooperative, you are also part of this project. Your commitment to consuming local products is one of the reasons why building this structure makes sense. We will continue to keep you informed about its progress.