Last Saturday evening, the municipality of Oria celebrated the VI edition of the Gala de la Almendra, an important social event with which the work of the associative and productive fabric of the municipality and the rest of the region is recognised and made visible.
The gala, which was presented by the journalist Paqui Martínez and was accompanied by the music of Guillermo Fernández, distinguished different personalities and companies whose daily work helps Oria and the region to continue to grow: economy, tourism, culture, sport, society and education.
The event was attended by the deputy for Economic Promotion and European Initiatives, Francisco Álvarez; the delegate of Agriculture of the Junta in Almería, Antonio Mena, the mayor of the municipality, Marcos Reche and the councillor responsible for the event, Antonio Torrente, among other authorities and guests.
The deputy for Economic Promotion and European Initiatives, Francisco Álvarez, congratulated the Town Hall for holding the 6th edition of this gala whose name pays tribute to the main economic engine of the municipality and stated that «all the award winners are an example and a source of inspiration for all the people of Almeria. Nobody has given you anything for free and your success is the result of effort, perseverance and talent».
Furthermore, Álvarez added that «the vast majority of you are promoters, self-employed, entrepreneurs, in other words, people who represent the effort and sacrifice to try to make your municipality, your region, your province bigger. That is the spirit of the Diputación de Almería, to support our farmers, businessmen, associations, groups, so that your region, your municipality, our province continues to grow as it is doing, but that can only be achieved if we are together and if we have people like you».
The mayor of the municipality, Marcos Reche, thanked the Diputación de Almería and the Junta de Andalucía for their support for the gala and highlighted the importance of almonds for the municipality and the visibility that this type of event gives to the people, companies and entities that make up the region and the province.
The delegate of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development, Antonio Mena, highlighted the importance of a new edition of this fair, which is a benchmark in the world of almonds. Mena explained that «the surface area planted with dry fruit crops, almonds, makes the municipality of Oria the area in Spain with the highest proportion of trees per square metre, so it is very necessary to have an event of this type to make it known». The delegate added that «these events serve to promote our agricultural production to the world, but also to boost tourism in an inland municipality such as Oria». «The Andalusian Government cannot fail to support initiatives such as these, which make our production systems bigger and give them visibility. In addition, it is necessary to highlight the incorporation of young people into agriculture in Oria, where the generational change is evident, although much remains to be done, in young people like Victor, one of the winners in this edition».
«It is also important to highlight the role played by the Regional Agricultural Offices in inland areas, being administrations close to the territory, where farmers and livestock farmers find advice and help in their relationship with the administration», concluded the delegate.
This year’s award winners:
AMPA Castellón de Olías
Juan García Galera (promoter of the shooting range)
Víctor Ramírez Fernández (young farmer and beekeeper)
UPA Almeria
TdoAlmendro Technical Portal
AOVE LaSolana2 (a company from the municipality also included in the Diputación’s ‘Sabores Almería’ brand)
Caserío LoBulle (rural accommodation)