The Priorat cooperatives launch VINCLOOP, an agricultural inter-cooperation network to transform the region
The agricultural cooperatives of the Priorat have joined forces to create VINCLOOP, an inter-cooperation network set up to respond to the social, economic and environmental challenges facing the county. The project is supported by the programme “Projectes singulars de promoció de l’economia social i solidària, creació de cooperatives i projectes d’intercooperació – Programa Singulars”, run by the Departament d’Empresa i Treball of the Generalitat de Catalunya, through the Direcció General d’Economia Social i Solidària, i el Cooperativisme.
What is VINCLOOP?
VINCLOOP is much more than a joint project: it is a strategic alliance between ten agricultural cooperatives in the Priorat that want to promote a new way of working, one that is collaborative, horizontal and rooted in the local area. The network pools knowledge, experience and resources to tackle shared challenges such as the lack of generational renewal, difficulties in accessing services, the loss of value of local produce and the environmental crisis.
The cooperatives behind the project are:
- Agrícola Falset-Marçà i Secció de Crèdit (Afalma)
- Vinícola del Priorat i Secció de Crèdit
- Agrícola i Secció de Crèdit de Cabacés
- Celler Cooperatiu Cornudella
- Agrícola i Secció de Crèdit de la Bisbal de Falset
- Agrícola i Secció de Crèdit Comarcal del Priorat
- Agrícola d’Ulldemolins Sant Jaume
- Celler Cooperatiu El Molar
- Cooperativa Agrícola de Bellmunt del Priorat
- Agrícola de Torroja – Centre del Priorat
A project for the region and its people
VINCLOOP starts from a clear principle: what drives the county is the people who live and work in it. With a democratic, participatory structure, the project aims to put the collective tools of the cooperative movement at the service of small farmers, of young people who want to put down roots in the countryside and of the local community that is committed to a rooted, fair and sustainable economy.
The project aims to promote specialised technical services for farms, launch support programmes for new farmers, develop initiatives to boost tourism linked to rural life, set up affordable housing schemes and create local energy communities. All this with a regenerative outlook that seeks to strengthen the social fabric and preserve the landscape, knowledge and rural life of the Priorat.
Support from the Programa Singulars
Thanks to the funding received through the Programa Singulars, the cooperatives have been able to set in motion three key lines of work to make VINCLOOP a reality:
- Defining the governance system for the inter-cooperation project:
Work has begun on building a democratic, participatory and workable governance model that will ensure the sustainability and continuity of the VINCLOOP network in the medium and long term. - Promoting cooperative logistics and a network of farm shops:
The cooperatives have begun to coordinate their farm shops and to study a joint logistics route linking villages, cooperatives and points of sale across the Priorat. The aim is to make zero-kilometre local produce easier to get hold of, encourage food sovereignty and strengthen the local economy. - Systematic collection of farm data for generational renewal:
A shared system is being developed to collect and analyse data from members’ farms. This tool will make it possible to take informed decisions, identify opportunities for alternative crops and offer better support to young people who want to start out in farming.
Looking to the future
With VINCLOOP, the Priorat cooperatives do not just want to hold out: they want to transform. They want to forge alliances, strengthen the community and build real alternatives to tackle rural abandonment, the climate crisis and the loss of local sovereignty.
In this way the agricultural cooperative movement stands up as a tool for the country and for the region. And the Priorat, true to its identity, shows once again that working together is the surest way forward.
Led by: Promoted by: Funded by:
