The event will take place in the Port of Catarroja and will feature festive and cultural activities such as a manual harvesting demonstration, a cooking show, a ‘Cant de Batre’ (song) competition, and concerts. This Sunday, September 21, the Valencia Rice Designation of Origin (D.O.) celebrates its 12th Harvest Festival. The event will take place in the Port of Catarroja and will host numerous festive and cultural activities centered around rice. This year, it will also feature a very special Honorary Reaper: Valencian actor Arturo Valls, who recently launched his ‘Socarrón’ rice brand.

The programme , which will run from early morning until the afternoon, will feature activities such as a manual harvesting demonstration, a showcooking event featuring rice, a Cant de Batre competition, and several musical performances.

The programme in detail

The event will start early, at 8:45, with a visit to the Tancat de la Pipa to discover the birds that live there. A little later, at 9:30, boat trips will begin on the Albufera de Valencia (reservation required at www.arrozdevalencia.org). Traditional Albufericas will sail out onto the lake through the rice fields to learn about the close relationship between the stages of rice cultivation and the water cycles in the Albufera.

At 10:30h, cooking classes and a showcooking event will begin with Eva Davó, from La Cantina de Ruzafa, who will share her secrets about rice cooking with the public. The chef, a descendant of illustrious Catarrogins, will interpret the marshland through rice with duck, cuttlefish, and crab, along with a mixture of nuts and aromatic plants. In the chef’s words: “It’s a rice dish that goes beyond the concept of zero kilometers, seeking to internalize both the landscape and the people who inhabit it. After all, there is no cuisine without territory, and no territory without farmers.” The Rice Tunnel will also be inaugurated, a tour of some of the restaurants that best understand Valencian rice.

At this point, and with a year so marked by the DANA last October, the twelfth edition of the Harvest Festival will pay special tribute to those affected with an awards ceremony. The event’s main event will then take place, beginning mid-morning with a manual harvesting demonstration. Around twenty farmers, dressed in traditional costume, will enter the dock at Port de Catarroja aboard a typical albuferencia (bucket) loaded with rice sheaves. To the sound of La Muixeranga del Carraixet, they will unload the sheaves, unload, and thresh an entire rice field while a presenter explains every aspect of the crop.

While the farmers harvest the rice field, the Cant de Batre (song) competition will take place. This is the work song that Valencian farmers used to sing during the long days of harvesting. It is a vocal song sung without musical accompaniment to keep the work going. The competition will have two rounds and different participants from the Valencian Community. Once the harvesting is complete, the President of the Regulatory Council, accompanied by the farmers, will present the award to the Honorary Reaper of the year. This year, the award is given to Valencian actor Arturo Valls, who recently entered the world of rice with his brand “Socarrón,” which bears the quality seal of the Valencian Designation of Origin (D.O.) and is grown in the Albufera Natural Park. “Not only has he just taken the plunge with his brand, but he also boasts his Valencian identity wherever he goes,” explains Santos Ruiz, manager of the Valencian Rice Designation of Origin (D.O.).

To conclude the festivities, rice portions will be offered at affordable prices (5 euros) around midday, while attendees will enjoy several performances: by the dance group La Chicalla and by the musical group Tres Fan Ball. A festive day to once again highlight Valencian tradition and culture.

Report by ‘24/7 Valencia’ team

Article copyright ‘24/7 Valencia’

More info: www.arrozdevalencia.org

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