1ST EDUCATIONAL TRIP, IN THE PELOPONNESE AND AITOLOAKARNANIA, FOR THE PDO & PGI PRODUCTS OF NEA PASEGES’S PROGRAM
Between the 30th of January and the 3rd of February 2023, in relation to NEA PASEGES’S (Greek Confederation of Unions of Agricultural Cooperatives) program, “Little Treasures of Europe”, the 1st educational trip for PDO & PGI products took part in the areas of Amfilochia, Kalavryta, Aigio and Nemea.
The group that participated in the five-day long trip consisted of food journalists, opinion leaders and food bloggers.
The group visited the high-end production facilities of the renowned Greek PDO feta cheese, in the areas of Kalavryta and Amfilochia, where they were given a tour by the cheese factories’ managers and shown all the production phases of PDO feta.
The tours were followed by tastings of cheeses, as well as other delicacies with PDO feta as their core ingredient, like “tyropites” (cheese pies), feta wrapped in phyllo pastry and drizzled with honey, “Greek” salads garnished with feta on top, “tyropitaria” (fried hand pies filled with cheese) and many more.
In the area of Aigialeia, they had the opportunity to observe the processing and packaging of the black Corinthian PDO raisins Vostitsa, visit the high-end factory in Aigio, as well as tour the vineyards, where the climate and terroir conditions, with the influence of the sea-winds and sunshine, are ideal for the production of this exceptional natural product.
In the area of Nemea, they visited the co-op’s winery facility, where they had the chance to see up-close the production and bottling of the Agiorgitiko PDO wine and of course, taste the renowned wine too.
They were informed by the expert oenologist about the way of cultivating the native red variety of the Agiorgitiko wine, that grows in the area of Nemea, and renders it the largest wine production area of single-variety vineyards in Greece.
The promotional program “Little Treasures of Europe”, with the support of the European Union and the stamp “Enjoy it’s from Europe”, gives us the chance to get to know the PDO & PGI products better and learn more about co-op producers all over Greece. More specifically, NEA PASEGES aims to spread awareness for the institution of co-ops and the development of the concept of co-ops.
“Little Treasures of Europe” is an excellent opportunity to introduce the public to some of the most special Greek products, such as feta, graviera and xynomyzithra cheeses, olive oils, fava (yellow split peas), tomataki (cherry tomatoes), Corinthian raisins, potatoes, wines, from Agrinio, Aigio, Kalavryta, Nemea (Corinth), Avia and Sterna (Messinia), the areas of Zakros, Koutsouras and Mylopotamos in Crete, Naxos and Santorini – all of them traditional products of high quality and nutritional value, produced by the co-ops of each location.
The PDO & PGI co-op products come from a specific location, area or, more rarely so, country. They owe their qualities and reputation to the distinctiveness of the local environment, as well as the people who produce them under a very specific process. The European Union supports, with its actions, the diversity of the locations, methods, traditions, as well as the geographic properties. For this reason, it protects their production process and offers the Greek consumers the chance to get to know them better, support them, so that in their turn, they can become ambassadors of these high-quality products for tourists that will be visiting Greece for the duration of the program.
NEA PASEGES proudly supports, with its actions, all its members, proving its faith in its producers and providing them with the opportunity to showcase their products through the press and online campaign, as well as events that will take place throughout the duration of the program.
You can find out more about the program, our products and producers on the Website, Facebook and Instagram.
