The Regional Director of Agriculture and Rural Development, Marco Caldeira, was today in Santa do Porto Moniz where he visited a farmer who produces, among other vegetables, about two tonnes of Madeira sweet potatoes.
The producer, António Câmara, considers the cultivation of this product to be a safe bet taking into account their quality. In addition to the great demand it has, it will soon benefit from the recognition of the status of Protected Designation of Origin.
It should be remembered that the traditional varieties of sweet potatoes from Madeira, cultivated by Madeiran and Porto Santo farmers, according to ancestral practices, are the ‘Brazilian,’ the ‘5 beaks,’ the ‘regional carrot,’ the ‘English,’ the ‘Cabeiras,’ the ‘Amarelinha’ and the ‘Cabreira branca do Porto Santo’ and are distinguished above all by the morphological characteristics of each regional variety, as well as by the juiciness of the pulp and the high carbohydrate content, protein, and ash.
Thus, in order to preserve, protect, and commercially enhance traditional regional varieties, in August 2021, the European Commission applied for registration of the name “Batata-doce da Madeira” as a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), under the quality regimes for agricultural products and foodstuffs of the European Union (EU). The Regional Directorate is considering extending this designation to other regional products to give more recognition to regional agriculture.
Samantha Gannon
info at madeira-weekly.com
