ESDIME – Agência para o Desenvolvimento Local no Alentejo Sudoeste
ESDIME is a cooperative local development agency coordinating territorial strategies and rural innovation initiatives in the Southwest Alent…
Cooperatives & Collectives
Fruta Feia runs food rescue as a cooperative, while Colmeia is a community-owned grocery in the Alentejo. Other collectives organise land and labour on the same principle.
Projects in this focus
Regenerativa Cooperativa Integral
Regenerativa is an integral cooperative based in São Luís, Odemira, that brings together people and projects to regenerate rural life across…
Traditional Dream Factory (TDF)
Traditional Dream Factory is transforming a former poultry factory in Portugal's Alentejo into a regenerative village combining co-living, s…
Cooperatives and collectives in Portugal
The cooperative is an old Portuguese form (agricultural co-ops have run cellars and mills here for generations) and it is being picked up again for food, housing, energy and land. The appeal is structural: members own it, so it cannot be sold out from under them.
Fruta Feia buys produce rejected on appearance and sells it to members in weekly baskets. Colmeia runs a community-owned grocery in the Alentejo. Others organise land, labour or shared equipment on the same principle.
Joining usually means becoming a member rather than a customer. Project pages explain how membership works. Related focuses: community resilience, food sovereignty and ethical shopping platforms. Dated activities from these projects are listed in our events calendar.