Pedro Calado, mayor of Funchal (CMF), and Humberto Vasconcelos, regional secretary for Agriculture, visited the Organic Agriculture Market, on Avenida Arriaga, today to present the new image of the space.
After listening to the sellers, the municipality and the Regional Secretariat for Agriculture decided to “improve some things” such as “increase the area where products are presented”, says Pedro Calado.
Humberto Vasconcelos considers that the market is in a space of “excellence for the dissemination of organic farming”, as there is “clearly an increase in producers”, currently with about 163 and more than 250 hectares of this production, adding that the work done it has been positive.
Because of the good adhesion on the part of the people, “we are going to improve the space even more” said the secretary with the Ministry of Agriculture.
Pedro Calado stressed that this is “a business that is complementary and parallel to the business done at the Mercado dos Lavradores. What we are doing here today is promoting and publicizing agriculture and the production of exclusively organic products”.
Mara Sousa, a market seller for 7 years, says that this initiative could be more profitable if “there was greater demand”, adding that the CMF should make “more appeal”.
On the increase of stalls in the Organic Farming Market, opinions are divided. For Mara Câmara, it is not competition, as it already has “fixed customers”, however, for Maria Câmara, it is more competition “because it’s all more of the same” and if there were more variety of products it would be more beneficial.
As far as buyers are concerned, there are people who are loyal and every Wednesday buy, claiming that the products are “tastier” and “that the consumption of these foods is reflected in health”.
The Organic Agriculture Market was created in 2007 and has been staged on Avenida Arriaga since January 11, 2017 and takes place every Wednesday.