As of September, the organisational chart of Mercabarna’s management has changed to reflect a new structure designed to reach the new strategic objectives set for this Food Unit.
Mercabarna and Assocome have joined forces to negotiate joint electricity and gas contracts. Thanks to this initiative, all businesses in the Food Unit taking part in the scheme will be able to save an average of 7.5% on their electricity bills and 13.7% on gas.
Mercabarna and its wholesale businesses, via the Wholesale Business Associations on the food estate, have reached an agreement to respond to the call put out by the Food Bank and agreed to donate fresh produce on a regular and ongoing basis and not only when there is excess stock.
Barcelona Mayor Xavier Trias visited Mercabarna on 7 May at the invitation of representatives of the ASSOCOME board.
Mercabarna continues to be a benchmark centre for numerous international delegations interested in knowing how a wholesale food estate is run and managed. Proof of this was the various professional visitors from across the world whom the Food Unit managers met with in May.
The 15 organisations that have signed up to the Good Commercial Practices Code for the Food Chain in Catalonia, which include Mercabarna and the Association of Fruit and Vegetable Wholesale Dealers of Barcelona (AGEM), have implemented a campaign in which all the actors in the agrofood chain will participate in promoting locally sourced products.
Mercabarna management is learning the way other European wholesale markets work in order to see new experiences that can help them improve, particularly with regard to international produce distribution.
Farmed fresh fishery produce is becoming increasingly important in the Market. This is shown by statistical figures the wholesale centre has released. Fish-farming products accounted for only 4.1% (1,599 tonnes) of total fresh fish in 1990, but by 2012 the figure had climbed to 22.1% (8,911 tonnes).
The different institutions and organisations with a major role in the agrofood chain that form the Good Commercial Practices Code, including Mercabarna and the Fruit and Vegetable Wholesale Dealers Association (AGEM), continue to work to define specific initiatives that will make it possible to improve sector operations and relations among the different agents in the chain.
A delegation from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the organisation that checks the safety of food, veterinary and medical products, visited Mercabarna on 6 March. Accompanied by representatives from the Catalan Food Safety Agency, the Mercabarna-based heads of the Barcelona Public Health Agency and the food estate’s managers, the visitors were shown the different health activities and checks performed in the Central Markets and in other businesses at the estate.
