Bio-Region of the Alto Tâmega e Barroso CIM is a finalist in the European Union’s Organic Awards Competition
In the category of “Best Organic Region”, the Bio-Region of the Alto Tâmega e Barroso Intermunicipal Community (CIM) has been nominated, along with two other Bio-Regions, in the European Union Organic Awards Competition.
This competition – organized by the European Commission in partnership with the European Economic and Social Committee, the European Committee of the Regions, COPA-COGECA and IFOAM Organics Europe – aims to recognize excellence throughout the organic value chain, rewarding the most outstanding and innovative players in organic production in the European Union.
Organic production has a very significant weight in the Alto Tâmega e Barroso region. According to the Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, there are around a thousand certified organic operators in the region. The Alto Tâmega e Barroso CIM is home to the country’s only SIPAM (Important Systems of World Agricultural Heritage) territory, Barroso, a seal awarded by the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) in 2018.
This CIM is Portugal’s second Bio-Region, it was the first to join the International Network of Bio-Regions (2018), and since then, dynamics have been developed in the territory that meet the measures proposed by the European Community in the European Green Deal.
The final ranking will be announced on September 23rd, the European Union’s Organic Day, in Brussels.
According to the Economic and Social Committee, this award, the first at European level in the field of organic production, follows on from the Action Plan for the Development of Organic Production, adopted by the European Commission on March 25, 2021. According to this action plan, increasing consumer demand for organic products is the best way to stimulate organic production. To this end, it is necessary to raise public awareness of the characteristics and benefits of this production method. With this in mind, the action plan provides for the awarding of these annual prizes from 2022 onwards, in order to recognize excellence in the organic value chain.
