Basque Culinary Center and Agrobank join forces to promote synergies between the gastronomic and agri-food sectors
The Basque Culinary Center and AgroBank, CaixaBank's business line focused on agri-food activities, have joined forces to consolidate synergies between the agri-food and gastronomy sectors. Their goal is to enhance these sectors through promotional initiatives that highlight and value the agri-food industry.
Among the projects planned under this new alliance, a significant initiative stands out: a platform aimed at showcasing young individuals within the agri-food sector. These young talents, through their work and projects, are driving transformative changes in the sector. Both AgroBank and the Basque Culinary Center are deeply committed to nurturing the next generation, and this initiative serves as a source of inspiration, knowledge, and networking opportunities for the agri-food sector.
Furthermore, this partnership will facilitate the development of the GastroXperience program, a gastronomic tour bringing cutting-edge gastronomy trends to various cities through the expertise of Basque Culinary Center professionals. As a result, we propose creating a series of experiences that provide CaixaBank customers with culinary insights. This initiative has already made its debut in Logroño, featuring presentations by Adela Balderas, coordinator of the Master in Innovation and Restaurant Management at Basque Culinary, who is also a professor at the University of Oxford and the University of Deusto. The event also included a showcooking session by Luis Arrufat.
In summary, these meetings aim to foster networking, promote synergies across different sectors, stimulate the development of new business ideas, and encourage creativity. The next stop on the tour will be in Vigo, followed by an event in the Gipuzkoan capital hosted by the Basque Culinary Center.
By entering into this alliance, AgroBank also joins the board of trustees of the Basque Culinary Center. This board includes various companies from the sector, as well as renowned chefs like Juan Mari and Elena Arzak, Eneko Atxa, Karlos Arguiñano, Martin Berasategui, and Hilario Arbelatiz, among others. Joxe Mari Aizega, the director of the Basque Culinary Center, and Juan Pedro Badiola, the northern territorial director of CaixaBank, both expressed their pride in this partnership. Badiola emphasized their ambition to provide solutions not only for the agricultural world but also for the gastronomic field. Aizega highlighted how AgroBank's inclusion on the board advances their comprehensive vision of gastronomy, with a particular focus on nurturing young talent within the agri-food sector from a gastronomic perspective.
The Basque Culinary Center represents a unique ecosystem where education, innovation, research, and entrepreneurship coexist, all with the aim of developing and promoting gastronomy as a reasoned understanding of what we eat and how we do it. Their mission is rooted in values such as passion, innovation, a commitment to excellence, and social responsibility. Located in San Sebastián since 2011, the Basque Culinary Center consists of the Faculty of Gastronomic Sciences and BCC Innovation, a technological center in Gastronomy that conducts interdisciplinary research and innovation in product and service design while providing support to companies, aspiring entrepreneurs, and young individuals with promising projects.