Good morning to you all.

 

It is obvious, yet must sometimes be reiterated because it may not have been sufficiently prominent in the public and political agenda of the city and the country, that food is a central element that fills the city with life. Just think about our internationally renowned cuisine, which has recently gained further prestige with new Michelin stars; the city’s 39 markets; our local shops; the canteens in each and every one of our schools, in each and every one of our neighbourhoods; the fairs and festivals, and the farms and territory that feed us.

 

Food is strength, celebration, health, economy, work and sustainability. That is why it is so important. Because food is life, and we are what we eat.

 

However, food is one thing and the food system in its current form is another. We now have a globalised, industrialised food system that generates enormous problems, both locally and globally. We could highlight the fact that nowadays, with the climate emergency being so visible, pollution from fossil fuels is often talked about as the main culprit of this climate emergency. While it is true that it plays a significant role, too little is said about the fact that the food system, in its current form, is responsible for up to one third of greenhouse gas emissions.

 

We must also denounce the fact that farming is disappearing, because our farmers are barely able to make a decent living due to the ridiculous prices paid for such crucially important work.

 

It could also be said that the current system leads to inadequate nutrition for a large part of the population, and that this is highly costly for the health of people and the planet.

 

And, unfortunately, part of the population does not have the resources to adequately or sufficiently feed itself. All of this is happening when the same food system wastes and throws away tonnes and tonnes of food every day.

 

In the face of this disaster – because I can think of no other way to describe it – and in the face of a system that doesn’t work and which requires urgent change, cities do not suffer all of the consequences. However, we have all of the responsibility and we must play a relevant role. Because we have it when it comes to maintaining this current system that doesn’t work and which creates so many problems.

 

Half of the world’s population lives in big cities, and this proportion continues to grow. when big cities already consume 70% of the world’s food. We are major centres of consumption and trade. And this clearly makes us part of the problem.

 

Over the last few decades, there has also been a tendency for cities to turn their backs on the surrounding area and farmers. A situation that requires a radical change towards a model of co-responsibility and cooperation between the city and the wider region.

 

It is no coincidence, therefore, that more and more cities – not just Barcelona – are now promoting sustainable food by encouraging their citizens to adopt a sufficient, fair and healthy diet.

 

Because food is both a necessity and a pleasure. It is the economic system that causes these perverse effects, which are to the benefit of the few and the detriment of the many.

 

Super-industrial livestock farming, so far removed from extensive livestock farming and small farms linked to the region, such as the macro-farms, which continue to grow uncontrollably. We are greatly concerned by the shocking news about Chinese macro-farms that occupy 20-floor skyscrapers. Thousands and thousands of animals are enclosed in these buildings. It is clear that we are not learning from what is happening to us. These farms will generate more disorders, more diseases, more novel viruses and, in turn, more pandemics. Apart from that, there is also the considerable harm inflicted on the animals.

 

Some industrial agricultural models of monocultures based on large quantities of imported fertilisers are not currently available due to the rising energy prices and the war in Ukraine, while intensive irrigation is no longer viable due to the droughts that are affecting us on an increasingly regular basis. And here in Catalonia, we all know how serious the reservoir situation is.

 

We also need to deal with the loss of local farmers, who are disappearing due to poor pay and the lack of recognition they receive for their work.

 

From this alone, it is clear that the system must be radically overturned.

 

In a time of crisis and rising living costs, can anyone really question whether “now is the right time to do it”?

 

Aware of and committed to these ideas, we met two years ago in this very Saló de Cent to announce that, in 2021, Barcelona would be the World Capital of Sustainable Food within the framework of the Milan Pact, which has dozens of signatory cities.

 

We wanted to do more than simply host a conference and get a group of mayors together for a couple of days to talk about the issue of food, without really achieving anything. We said that this was an opportunity to promote a new food model for the city as a whole – and for the system with which the city interacts – that we did not want to waste. 

 

Barcelona had already been taking steps to place the issue as a priority on the municipal agenda. And the most committed parts of society were already doing much more than this. In Barcelona, public administrations had long been promoting projects and debates in order to advance towards food sovereignty, sustainable food and agroecology with a view to benefiting its citizens.

 

At the time, we spoke of how we wanted our status of World Capital of Sustainable Food to mark a genuine turning point. Rather than being just another large event or programme, we wanted it to be one that would bring about real change.

 

We proposed an ambitious project for the city and metropolitan area which would go far beyond simply hosting the World Forum of the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact, acting as a lever for change in the transformation of the food model.

 

And we wanted to make tangible progress, despite the limited `powers that cities have in this area. And I modestly believe that we are making progress in that regard:

 

• We have helped to generate a wide-ranging debate on the role of food in key aspects for our city’s present and future, and our citizens are now becoming more aware and better informed. We have helped to put food at the centre of the social and political debate.

• But we have done more than raise awareness and put the issue on the agenda. Much more, in fact. We have launched concrete projects and transformative sustainable food policies. By way of example, I would like to highlight the following:

• • Green Commerce in Municipal Markets, which has also just been recognised at the International Cities Forum in Rio de Janeiro. 

  • Healthier and More Sustainable Canteens in primary schools.

  • Mercabarna’s Biomarket and Foodbank.

  • The Public Food Procurement Guidelines, which we will adopt next week.

  • The Terra Pagesa pilot project.

  • The more-than-70 funded projects carried out by entities and companies such as those in attendance today.

 

And so many other projects, some of which you will hear more about later.

 

I would like to take this opportunity to make one final point. Namely, that we have done all this while simultaneously promoting Barcelona as a gastronomic capital of undisputed international prestige. What’s more, I believe that this strategy, which is committed to sustainability and health, will help to improve our city’s reputation.

 

I feel that last week’s announcement of further Michelin stars being awarded to establishments in Barcelona can be viewed as further confirmation of the momentum and power that the city is gaining. We are now the Spanish city with most Michelin stars. However, we don’t want to limit ourselves to fine dining. These are just an indicator that the city’s entire gastronomic fabric is of the highest quality and excellence. 

 

Therefore, high-level gastronomy, an enjoyment of eating and sustainable and healthy food are more than compatible. Rather, they are great and essential allies on the road to transforming our food system, as chef Carme Ruscalleda will explain later on.

 

There are those who are intent on propagating an unrepresentative and profoundly false discourse about Barcelona’s decline. The truth is that our city's gastronomy is also in a good place right now, despite the crises and uncertainties that we have been facing.

 

And today we are taking another step forward. Or rather, another leap forward. Today we will present a city-wide strategy to move forward, together, towards the healthy, fair and sustainable model that we are targeting, with our sights set on 2030.

 

I would like to thank the Commissioner for Social Economy, Local Development and Food Policy and his team. I would also like to thank the other departments involved (Commerce, Markets, Health, Education, Ecology, Social Rights, etc.), since this is a cross-cutting project that involves the entire City Council.

 

I would like to offer special thanks to Álvaro Porro, the Commissioner. He is a very discreet person who would never demand public recognition, but he has shown extraordinary ability, not only in identifying the issue but also in building trust and complicity, both internally and externally. And it is largely thanks to this good work – and way of working – that we are here today. So thanks to you, Álvaro.

 

And of course, thanks to the entire association and economic fabric involved. Our ‘World Capital’ status and the city-wide strategy that we are presenting today would not have been possible without the help and support of all of you. It is you who are the real protagonists of this food transformation: families, farmers, tradespeople, markets, restaurants, the educational and cultural sphere, the scientific world, companies, cooperatives and neighbourhood organisations, to name but a few.

 

This is not the strategy of the City Council, but of Barcelona city. And we will make it possible together.

 

Consensus and alliance are some of the most valuable outcomes of the strategy. That is why we made the City Agreement for the Barcelona Healthy and Sustainable Food Strategy for 2030, which provides us with a shared space in which the city government and civil society can continue to take steps forward, side-by-side.

 

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the rest of the municipal opposition groups for participating in the strategy process and helping to support the creation of this City Agreement. The responsibility of transforming the food system does not lie at the feet of anyone in particular. Rather, it is a collective requirement and thus a city-wide project that must transcend governments and political parties.

 

On behalf of the City Council, I would like to take this opportunity to invite everyone who is not yet a member to join us. It’s never too late to join, and the more we are, the more success we will achieve.

 

The transformation of the food model, which has always been a challenge, is no longer an option. It is now a genuine emergency.

 

The signatories of the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact and the institutions, entities and organisations committed to health and the planet have long warned of the impact of the current model on climate change.

 

Being World Capital of Sustainable Food 2021 has given Barcelona the chance to be part of the solution and not part of the problem. We took advantage of this opportunity, and we want to keep doing so.

 

We now have a strategy where the most important things are already in place:  support for the food model that we want; knowledge of the actions we need to promote and how to do it; and the will to achieve this together with everyone in attendance today, and many others too. And, of course, involving the maximum number of administrations at the highest level, since these tend to have greater powers. Not only at the regional and national level, but also at the European Union level.

 

We, in any case, are very clear in what we want. We want to be, and can be, one of the cities that lead the way in changing the model of the industrialised and globalised food system that is currently harming people and the planet.

 

We want to leave a healthy, fair and sustainable food system for our sons and daughters that leaves absolutely nobody behind. 

 

Thank you very much for all the work that you have done and will continue to do.

 

Thank you.

 

Recording of the presentation