The Azorean Deputy in the European Parliament, elected by the Liberal Initiative (IL), Ana Martins, visited the Festas da Praia Food Fair on Thursday, where she spoke to the local population and businesspeople from the catering sector. There, she defended the need to study the best ways for products from the Outermost Regions (OR) to overcome the “challenge of distance”.
“Portugal is known for its gastronomy, which is varied and rich, and those who work in this area have an opportunity and, of course, also face challenges. I especially wanted to find out what these challenges are, from these people who work to enhance our products and the brand of Portugal and various Portuguese regions, each unique in its own way,” she said of the visit.
Ana Martins will be an alternate member of the European Parliament’s Transport and Tourism Committee. “I’m very interested in bearing in mind the kind of challenges these traders face and the extent to which something can be done at the level of the European institutions,” she said.
For example, in the case of Madeira businesspeople taking part in events such as the Festas da Praia fair, an “added difficulty” could be the lack of a direct air link.
“The issue of transportation is above all a national matter and then there is also some regional involvement. I think there’s a temptation to always think in terms of European funds. There’s no doubt that we have to see what’s available and how it can be put to better use, not from the point of view of dependency, but much more from the point of view of investment,” she said.
For Ana Martins, however, it is above all necessary to “think about the rules of the game” and “how they can be improved for those who want to operate and make the most not only of the opportunities at the national level but also of the single European market”.
“That products, especially from the outermost regions, which always have the challenge of distance, can reach the European market and make the most of this market, which is expected to increase with the enlargement of the European Union,” she stressed.
Ana Martins once again argued that the Azores should not continue to move “in a direction of greater and greater dependence” on European funds, but should “learn from the mistakes of the past” and use these funds to take advantage of the advantages that the region has.

Translated to English as a community outreach program from the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures Department (MCLL) as part of Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance) at California State University, Fresno, PBBI thanks Luso Financial for sponsoring NOVIDADES.