The auditorium of the Universidad Europea del Atlántico (European University of the Atlantic, UNEATLANTICO) will host the ninth edition of the Cantabria Agri-Food Forum tomorrow, Tuesday 23rd September. Organised by Diario Montañés, the forum will bring together a large number of speakers across six discussion panels.
The event will begin at 9:30 a.m. with a welcome from the editor-in-chief of El Diario Montañés, José Luis Pérez, followed by institutional speeches from the rector of UNEATLANTICO, Rubén Calderón, and the regional government’s Minister for Rural Development, Livestock, Fisheries and Food, María Jesús Susinos.
The director general of the Interalimentario Forum, Víctor Yuste, will open the series of presentations with a speech focused on ‘The value of the agri-food chain in today’s society.’ Next, Fernando Collantes, professor of History and Economic Institutions at the University of Oviedo, will analyse dairy consumption in Spain.
The round table on ‘Food production and safety’, moderated between 10:35 and 11:15, will bring together leading voices from the Cantabrian livestock and agri-food sector. The speakers will be: Fernando Ruiz, manager of AFCA; livestock farmer Álvaro Pereda (Ganadería Arrabal); Jacobo Alonso, managing director of AgroCantabria; Luis Pérez Portilla, secretary general of UGAM-COAG and cheese maker at Granja El Pendo; and Manuel Pérez, director of the Cantabrian Interprofessional Dairy Laboratory.
The programme will continue with the participation of Pablo Pereda, director of the Andía Lácteos plant in Renedo de Piélagos, and Álvaro Ortiz, general director of El Buen Pastor, in the round table discussion entitled ‘Production’. Also noteworthy is the round table for the presentation of the project to recover the Pasiega red cow, led by Carlos Micó and Lidia Andrés, from CIFP La Granja de Heras, as an example of educational innovation and conservation of local livestock heritage.
The round table entitled ‘La puesta en valor’ (Promotion) will feature Diana del Campo, director of the Nestlé plant in La Penilla; Julián Terán, head of the Andros factory in La Serna de Iguña; José María Alonso, cheesemaker at Quesoba and president of the Quered network; and Charo Arredondo, vice-president of InLac and livestock farmer.
The final presentation will be given by Clara Medina, director of consumer affairs at Mercadona, at a round table entitled ‘The role of distribution in the population’s food and health’.