The XII International Congress Mediterranean Diet was held in Barcelona last week within the framework of the Food Fair Alimentaria. On Wednesday 6th April, Raúl Compés López, Director of CIHEAM Zaragoza, took part in a Round Table “Dieta Mediterránea, la más saludable”, moderated by Elisa Plumed, President of the Spanish Association of Food and Agriculture Journalists.
He pointed out that sustainability is not determined by the nature of the product itself, but by how it is produced or consumed. He added that to determine whether a product or production chain is sustainable we have to know how it has been produced, processed, transported and distributed. It may be Mediterranean but it may not have been produced sustainably.
Compés went on to say that to discover how sustainable a product is, we need a great deal of information, not always available to consumers. The Administration should oblige companies to provide neutral information for consumers so they can choose the product that best suits their preferences and favour direct sales and short distribution channels.