Prototype of a wholesale distribution node to reduce food inequalities: Mercabesòs

This study proposes the creation of Mercabesòs: a new public centre of wholesale distribution on the Besòs axis of the Barcelona metropolitan area. Mercabesòs is not just a logistics infrastructure. It is a strategy to reduce food inequalities through a integral policy that acts on production, distribution and access to food.

In the Besòs axis, where more than 600,000 people live, these inequalities are especially visible and depend on three factors: the availability of fresh food in the neighborhood, the available income, and the time to buy and cook. This limits access to healthy and sustainable food.

Mercabesòs wants to respond to these inequalities with a triple agenda: social, economic and ecological. To do so, it must be part of a integral metropolitan and national policy to strengthen short food supply chains to address inequalities.

• Date: 2026
• Authors: Rubén Martínez, Adrià Rodríguez, Rubén Suriñach (ECOHUB) and Eva Vilaseca
• Keywords: food distribution, inequalities, short food supply chains, food policy