Mercat de la Boqueria is one of Barcelona’s famous
markets and a model for many markets around the world. It has recently introduced
some changes to make sure it retains its relevance to local fresh food
customers and in the process restrict the influence of tourists.
Tourists,
particularly tourist groups are frowned upon by traders because they basically
clog up the works and don’t buy much. Camera toting tourists get in the way of
legitimate local foodies and in a city dominated by markets that is an
important issue.
Tour
groups have been limited to a maximum of 15 people at certain trading times and
that has now been extended to include all hours on Fridays and Saturdays during
peak months.
Pre-prepared
produce for immediate consumption has been restricted and must be packaged,
wrapped, and sealed. No new bars and restaurants may open and in a humorous
move that says a lot about the guile of some market traders, the regulations require
no flat surfaces on stalls. In other words surfaces must be on an incline which
will be a disincentive to the serving of open drinks and unsealed plates of
food.
The
proposal is aimed at recovering the market for city residents and raises some
interesting comparisons with The Queen Vic Market. Many of our food hall
traders would sympathise with Barcelona traders, although, in a market like QVM
where more than half the rental income comes from traders reliant on tourists,
the application is not quite so simple.