The Christmas baking season has already started in Estepa
It's still a long way off, but in Estepa it already smells like Christmas. In this Seville town, they are already preparing the traditional mantecados and polvorones - and this year sales are up five percent. This means they will produce around 22 million kilos of pastries, confirming Estepa as leader of the sector in Spain. And all this happens from now to December.
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September brings new almonds, fresh from the harvest. And in Estepa, production is already under way, just like every other year. The recipe is the same as always: lard, cinnamon, flour, sugar... to make the traditional dough which then goes to the ovens.
The national market consumes 90% of this production, where Estepa is still the leader in the sector. The season kicks off with a forecast of 5% growth - that is, some 22 million kilos of mantecados, polvorones and other Christmas sweets. Another tradition is that women fill 85% of these seasonal jobs over the next four months. There are about 4,500 workers in the local industry, which prides itself on being the benchmark for quality, without losing its artisanal character. The Regulatory Council certifies 19 companies as authentic producers from Estepa. Now they say the next challenge is to break into new markets and increase their exports... And their achievement: maintaining excellence over 150 years of tradition.
