This is because from April 30th and May 3rd three major parallel events took place in the city: the 3rd Native Seed Festival (organized by Treinta y Tres municipality), the 2nd meeting of the Agroecology Network, and the biannual meeting of the Native Seeds Network. But in addition, there were tens of workshops, talks, documentary screenings, and round tables on sustainable production, the need for public policies to promote it, and the impact of tree and soy monoculture plantations on Uruguayan agriculture and economy.

The leading role of the municipality has not developed by chance. Under Gerardo Amaral´s administration, member of the Frente Amplio party, the agency of Territorial Food Sovereignty (SAT) was created. A member of the agency, Jose Puigdeval, talked to us during the event in the framework of the live broadcast carried out by Real World Radio.

“People working at the SAT are increasingly participating in this type of events, farmers, fishermen, beekeepers, etc. And also institutions like some NGOs which have strongly supported this effort, and we are seeing its results now.” stated Puigdeval.

The University of the Republic, member of the Native Seeds Recovery and Re-appreciation Network, through the Agronomy School, was also present at the banks of Olimar River, with a delegation from the Extension Service and its authority Humberto Tomasino. Tomasino is a specialist in Environment and Development issues and gave a lecture on the challenges of sustainability in the Uruguayan agriculture sector, and together with his team was part of panels and round tables.

On the participation of a delegation from the Landless Rural Workers Movement (MST) from Brazil, Puigdeval highlighted a working agreement among Treinta y Tres municipality, the NGO Pindó Azul and Treinta y Tres and Rio Grande do Sul producers to recover medicinal plants, in which producers from MST from Porto Alegre are participating. According to Puigdeval, this project, called “Integrating Knowledge”, has strengthened the bi-national links on agroecology and has even received international recognition by the Plamsur projects (MERCOSUR Medicinal Plants). In fact, a joint delegation of the MST and the SAT will go to Asunción, Paraguay to present the project.

Several of the lines of work of the SAT have to do with the recovery of almost extinct varieties, and the promotion of the cultivation of medicinal or aromatic herbs as alternatives. It also has a strong educational feature which caused that all primary schools from Treinta y Tres department were present in the festival.

On other issues, Puigdeval talked about the native seeds bank, which is based on the exchange of seeds outside the limits of commercialization, like it could be seen in the event.

“The popular native seeds bank is in the hands of the producers, and its logic is not to trade them, but to make the seeds accessible to the public. A producer must return one and a half times the amount of seeds withdrawn; it is a type of exchange, and that is what needs to be strengthened. That everyone can access seeds without having to pay for them. This is small scale, but the reproduction of seeds, causing a self-reproduction habit is highlighted, which is crucial to all producers”.