If there are any vegetables that invite us to socialize this is the shorts and the famous ones calçoted that are made with it. This traditional food from the province of Tarragona but that has been extended to many other areas is the great excuse to organize meetings and parties with family and friends. That under normal circumstances, prior to pandemic times like now. This season, everything indicates that it will be a tough year for specialized restaurants and also for many producers of this delicious product.
The strong season of calçots It starts at the end of January, after the break from the copious Christmas meals. Usually ends around eastern although every time, due to the great acceptance, it extends more, so it already begins in November and ends in April.
The pandemic will stop the famous calçotas
The current restrictions caused by the coronavirus they will be a drag on the sector. The PGI Calçot de Valls that produces more than 13 million of this tender and sweet chives is trying to delay production. All with the hope that these meeting limits will be canceled or looser so that consumers can enjoy this typical Catalan dish.
It also wants to promote from the PGI la Information online and encourage this onion to be incorporated into many recipes that are made with other varieties of onion.
In addition to the traditional growing area of Tarragona there are many other areas that produce calçots. All over Spain there are more than 70 million of these onions. They are grown mainly in Lleida, Almería, the Catalan Maresme region and the Ebro delta.
Last March and with the first confinement, the sector already had the first impact but it could be cushioned with online sales and the season was not totally lost. But you are at risk as the bad sanitary situation and with it, a crop that is the economic base of many farmers and hoteliers in the area. Perhaps it is time to reinvent yourself to prepare the calçoted at home with the cohabitants just to respect the rules.
