Melón de Torres de Berrellén
Torres de Berrellén is a village of about 1,500 people, located in the fertile valley of the Ebro River just outside of Zaragoza in northeastern Spain. Due to the deep alluvial soils of the region, Torres de Berrellén has a rich agricultural tradition. Currently, the average plot size is around half a hectare, and each farmer typically manages a total of about 10 ha. Among the crops grown around Torres are corn, alfalfa, wheat, fruit trees, and various vegetables (often grown in family gardens for household consumption). During the last century, however, Torres de Berrellén was known as el pueblo de los melons (“the town of melons”) due to the quality of the local tendral melons (a variety of Cucumis melo). These melons are oval-shaped and typically weigh 3-5 kilograms, though some are as heavy as 8 kg. The rind is dark green and smooth with shallow longitudinal furrows. There is also a lesser-known white variety that the oldest members of the community remember. The seed cavity is long and the flesh is greenish white, flavorful, and very sweet. Tendral melons are also known as winter melons (melón de invierno) because they can be stored for long periods; in Torres de Berrellén, people still hang the freshly harvested melons to allow them to mature so that they can be enjoyed at Christmas. They are traditionally eaten as is, on their own. Many of the families of Torres grew melons until the 1960s-70s, but then this crop largely disappeared, for reasons that are still unclear. Today, only about 2% of the cultivated land around the village is dedicated to melons, and just 3% of the local population remains professionally involved in agriculture.
In 2016, two neighbors from Torres de Berrellén began a project to recover the famous melon of their hometown, with support from a number of regional agricultural research institutions, including CITA (Centro de Investigación y Tecnología Agroalimentare de Aragón) and a germplasm bank in Zaragoza. The first challenge was to find the genetic material of the original melons, but this proved difficult because, in the intervening years, the tendral melons from Torres had hybridized with other tendral varieties. By collecting seeds from local farmers and growing them in isolation from each other in test fields in Torres and two nearby villages, the members of the recovery project were able to identify which melons most closely resembled the original melon of Torres de Berrellén. Part of the analysis involved gathering groups of community elders for tasting sessions and asking them which of the melons tasted most like those that they remembered from decades ago. They also analyzed the physical characteristics of the melons, as well as their ability to store for long periods. Since 2016, the local group has repeated these activities and has successfully recovered the tendral verdadero, the true melon of Torres de Berrellén. The melons have been showcased and received recognition in agricultural and food fairs throughout Spain, including Madrid Fusión 2018; these festivals have provided a context for experimenting with new recipes. In addition, the melons are now being grown at a local school so that young students can learn about gardening and the traditional foods and culture of their region. The successful recovery of the Torres de Berrellén melon through a project that is both social and scientific is a great example of how important and beneficial it is to involve the entire community in efforts to protect and promote biodiversity and local gastronomic heritage.
Back to the archive >En 2016, dos vecinos de Torres de Berrellén comenzaron un proyecto para recuperar el famoso melón de su pueblo natal, con el apoyo de varias instituciones regionales de investigación agrícola, incluido el CITA (Centro de Investigación y Tecnología de Agroalimentaria de Aragón) y un banco de germoplasma en Zaragoza. El primer desafío fue encontrar el material genético de los melones originales. Esto fue difícil, ya que con el paso de los años los melones tendrales de Torres habían hibdridado con otras variedades de tendrales. Tras recolectar semillas de los agricultores locales y plantarlas por separado en campos de prueba en Torres y en las áreas circundantes, los miembros del proyecto de recuperación han podido identificar más de cerca qué melones se parecían más al melón original de Torres de Berrellén. Parte del análisis consistió en reunir grupos de ancianos de la comunidad en sesiones de degustación donde se les preguntaba qué melones de todos los que habían probado les recordaban más a los que comían décadas atrás. También analizaron las características físicas de los melones, así como su habilidad para ser almacenados durante periodos largos. Desde 2016, el grupo local ha repetido estas actividades y ha recuperado con éxito el tendral verde, el verdadero melón de Torres de Berrellén. Los melones se exhibieron y recibieron reconocimiento en ferias agrícolas y alimentarias en toda España, incluido Madrid Fusión 2018. Estos festivales han proporcionado un contexto para experimentar con recetas nuevas. Además, los melones ahora se cultivan en una escuela local para que los jóvenes estudiantes puedan saber cómo cultivar frutas y verduras y aprendan sobre la cultura y los alimentos tradicionales de su región. La recuperación exitosa del melón de Torres de Berrellén, a través de un proyecto que no solo es social sino también científico, es un gran ejemplo de cuán importante y beneficioso es involucrar a toda la comunidad en los esfuerzos para proteger y promover la biodiversidad y el patrimonio de la gastronomía local.
