Barahona Cluster starts project to protect local products and sustainability of producers

April 24, 2021.- Under the name “Presidium Slow Food Balneario Los Patos”, the Barahona Tourism and Production Cluster presented this project that will protect the products, producers, as well as traditional production processes of the southern province, which could be in danger of disappearing or in need of preservation.

This initiative is part of the international platform “Slow Food Travel”, an initiative that pursues the development of a tourism proposal based on the territory, agriculture and gastronomic traditions.

“The heart of Slow Food projects is traditional food, how it is produced, the agrotourism system that identifies a territory allowing to raise the quality of the tourist experience,” said Elena Nunziatini during a meeting with the media in the community of Los Ducks in the province of Barahona.

The project will allow the visitor to be educated about biodiversity and local culture, as well as to make the elements of cultural identity and gastronomy known through direct experience in the territory. Additionally, it allows the linking of micro, small and medium-sized companies that exist in the province through gastronomic and tourist aspects and facilitates the placement of their products in local and international markets.

In the case of the “Presidium Slow Food Balneario Los Patos”, Nunziatini explained that a first diagnosis was made by the Dominican chef and gastronomic researcher Carlos Estevez.

“In this initial survey, we were able to identify all the restaurants and dining rooms that exist in the municipality, in addition to identifying the gastronomic offer, reviewing the main ingredients used in the different dishes, establishing whether they are products originating in the area. We also work on kitchen inspections to verify the methods used as well as the existing equipment and facilities and the handling they give to waste and food handling ”, Estevez emphasized.

As a result of the first diagnosis made in the municipality of Los Patos, it was determined that there is great potential to guide the food businesses that exist in the area and turn this municipality into the first “Presidium of Slow Food” in the country. This is based on the fact that they have a uniform Creole gastronomic offer, based on fish, shellfish and other products of the region, as well as the handling of fresh products.

Among the benefits that the project will generate for tourism in the province, the integration and strengthening of the food and beverage businesses of the Los Patos spa, as well as its supply chain to guarantee the origin with local products, of station and respectful with the environment (ecological, biological and organic).

Through the mechanisms established by the Slow Food Org. Foundation for Biodiversity, it will be possible to work on the training and standardization of professionals and the processes involved in the project.

“The communication of an intertwined history of the product, the process and the producer, serves as a model and inspiration to promote sustainability in the region. Furthermore, the fact of promoting the Presidium certification seal, both in the region, in the country and internationally, is a complementary strength of the tourist attraction that will help improve the tourist flow to our province ”.