If you want to live a more sustainable lifestyle and support local producers, here are some useful tricks and tips to ascertain if the food you buy in Spain is locally sourced.
It may be a global world where you can get hold of more foreign food products in Spain than ever before, but increasingly people are looking for locally-gown and produced items.
This is both in a bid to be sustainable and reduce impact on climate change as well as in response to global trade tensions caused by US tariffs for example.
Buying fruit and vegetables imported from the likes of Peru, South Africa, and Turkey instead of buying home-grown ones from Spain, means that the carbon footprint of the produce is much greater. It’s had to travel further meaning a lot more fuel has been used.
Of course it may not possible to buy local all the time. Coffee, tea and cacao for example don’t grow in Spain, so if you’re after these items, then they will have come from much further afield.
It’s may not always obvious straight away where products are made though, so it’s important to do your research and do your bit for the planet.
By buying Spanish products you’ll also be ensuring a significant portion of your money stays in the country and supports the economy, it also supports job creation and aims to promote workers’ rights.
There are several ways you tell if your product of choice is from Spain, here are some of the most common below.
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The barcode
You can easily tell if the product has come from a Spanish company by looking at the barcode. If a company has its headquarters in Spain, it will have a code starting with 84. The important thing to remember though is that it doesn’t indicate if the product is actually manufactured in Spain or not.
The packaging
One big clue as to whether a product is Spanish made is to look at the labels and packaging. In this case you will see words such as ‘hecho en España‘, ‘elaborado en España’ or ‘fabricado en España’ to show that they were either made or produced here. Fruit and veg shops will often have stickers or signs giving this information.
If you don’t find these phrases, then there’s no guarantee that the product is made in Spain. Unfortunately if you see a Spanish company name, with a Spanish address, this is just the name of the importer, packer, or distributor, not the manufacturer, so again you won’t actually know if it’s come from abroad or not.
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Find stores specialising in locally sourced products
There are various maps that can show you where you can buy locally-sourced food products in Spain such as this one by Sostenibel o Sustentable which shows you a range of stores in your area.
Simply zoom in on the map to zoom to where you live and then you’ll see the shops represented by logos depending on what they sell. There are mainly cheese, oil, wine, fruit and vegetables, meats and regional products, but some places even show where you can buy Spanish-made fashion, footwear, gifts and bicycles.
Download specialised apps
Other than looking at labels in the supermarkets, one of the easiest ways to find products than haven’t come from the other side of the planet is to download several apps to help you.
Buy European is designed to allow consumers to search for products with a seal of origin within the European Union. You’ll see Spanish-made products as well as those from other member countries. It also tells you if a brand is committed to the environment.
Buy from EU is another app which shows you which products made in Europe. It will also show you good alternatives to non-EU products and introduce you to new European brands.
La Colmena Que Dice Sí This app allows you to buy quality products directly from local producers. Once downloaded you can join the community closest to you and place your order online.
