Spain

The time it takes to get to a highway anywhere in Spain, on a revealing map

by

Faced with the pressing housing problem in Spain In large cities, one of the simplest solutions for those who can afford it is to leave stressed centers such as Madrid or Barcelona in search of more accessible municipalities and properties. How much? It depends on your budget, what your work is like and what the destination location offers you in such objective terms as services and infrastructure. And there is one essential to move: the distance to a main road. I speak with knowledge of the facts: this was a key factor when choosing a municipality to buy an apartment months ago. My new location has direct access to the highway and getting from there to my trusted padel club in Pamplona is 10 minutes longer than doing it from my old apartment, located in the center of the Navarrese capital. Although it is not ideal, my pocket has appreciated it and the sacrifice is profitable for me. Now, having chosen an idyllic municipality in the Navarrese Pyrenees would have been a very bad idea in terms of mobility (although bucolic on days like today). That was my personal decision, but given the prices, I know that I am not alone: ​​from buying in the capital to doing so in a municipality in the province there are price variations of up to 131% in Madrid or 126% in Álava, according to the latest Idealista study that collects La Razón. Because if the price of the property in Villagónadas de Abajo is the lowest in the province but it is where Cristo lost his lighter, already such. Well yes: the price differences are abysmal and the communications are too. An x-ray of territorial inequality and Spanish orography This map created by Digital Cartography With data from the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, this is evident. The cartography collects the minutes by car to a highway or highway from a good part of the Spanish state (if there are no this type of roads, as happens in Ceuta or Melilla for example, then they do not appear) with information from 2022. To see everything in a more intuitive way, they have used the colors of the traffic light, where green is what can cost you up to 20 minutes and red goes from one hour to 133 minutes in the maroon areas. The access time to a highway or highway in Spain. Digital cartography with data from the Ministry If we superimposed a physical map with a demographic one we would find a clear diagnosis of red zones in critical areas such as the Asturian massif and the Pyrenees, the muga with Portugal (especially in Zamora, Salamanca and western Extremadura), the Iberian System and the maximum expression of “Empty Spain” in the south of Teruel, the north of the basin and areas of Guadalajara or the Betic Systems. We know that in communications Spain It is a centralized state with Madrid as the nerve center and the lines of these main roads, although they do not appear on the map, can be intuited. Without going any further, it is not too difficult to imagine where the A-2 goes to Barcelona or the A-6 to A Coruña. That is the first clue as to why we find such an uneven map: the radial network model, which leaves enormous gaps in peripheral areas that are not linked to large state/European corridors. Obviously the extreme orography of the Pyrenees or the Iberian System makes construction difficult on a technical and economic level (it is not that it is not possible to lay out viaducts or tunnels, it is that it makes the cost skyrocket), but the Average Daily Intensity mandates: for a public work to be approved there is a cost-benefit analysis and if an area has a low population density, the ADI is low, making it difficult to justify the investment. On the other hand, there are environmental restrictions: some of these red zones coincide with national parks or protected areas. In this scenario, obtain a Environmental Impact Statement (mandatory in projects of this magnitude) is an impossible mission. The small print. Something that I greatly appreciated when I returned to Navarra is that there is no traffic… compared to Madrid. The rush hour for leaving work or school may be noticeable in a few minutes of delay, but it is light years away from the traffic jams that I have had to suffer in return or bridge operations when I lived in the state capital. Because although in Madrid almost everything is green, in practice those minutes correspond to a distance traveled respecting the limits of the road and assuming fluid traffic. In Xataka | This is the DGT map to visualize where there are active V-16 beacons in Spain. There is another more useful unofficial map In Xataka | Europe’s passenger car industry, in a revealing map that makes it clear who is the real “engine” of the EU Cover | Digital cartography

Spain prepares for a “festival” of Atlantic storms

by

After a month of January that has been through water and snow (especially the last few weeks) and in which the Sun has made little appearance, all eyes are on how the month of February will start this Sunday. But a priori, the trend of constant rains seems to continue to prevail throughout the peninsular territory, as AEMET itself has pointed out in its latest bulletin. Boiled. This is undoubtedly the best summary we have for what we will see throughout the month of February, at least until the 22nd, which is what it covers the latest prediction from the national meteorological agency. And the fault is not an isolated front that reaches the peninsula, but a real carousel of fronts that will come and go of the national territory. This means that rainfall throughout the month of February will be above average, and a significant rainfall surplus is expected, especially in the west of the peninsula, Extremadura and the central-southern area. Something similar to what we have had in recent days, so we will not find any changes. They are persistent. As we say, prediction models such as ECMWF point to an atmospheric configuration that opens the door to the continuous arrival of storms from the Atlantic, a scenario that counteracts the initial forecasts that it was going to be a much drier winter than usual. And this change in the forecast completely breaks the trend of the dry environment and it is good news, since the reservoirs begin to fill for spring and summer. Something that is undoubtedly very positive in case half of the year the trend continues to be quite dry and that could be a serious problem if we had not now filled our water reserves. The cold on pause. If the water is the protagonist, the temperature is the supporting actress that surprises, and despite the rain and overcast skies, we are not going to experience extreme cold. Something that agrees with what the AEMET pointed out when seeing that we have been there for three years (for now) without a great cold wave throughout Spain. That is why normal temperatures or slightly above the historical average are expected, and without severe frosts. This is because the Atlantic air flow, being oceanic and humid, usually tempers the environment, avoiding the drastic drops in thermometers typical of continental or Siberian air inlets. In the long term. These predictions are made with the ECMWF models with their weekly maps and clearly show the persistence of low pressures surrounding the peninsula until the middle of the month. But in the long term everything can end up changing and give a very different prognosis. Although it is true that combining it with ICON and other global models reinforces the instability forecast, which increases the reliability of this prediction throughout the month of February. In Xataka | We have always believed that London is very rainy and that Barcelona is not. The only problem is that it’s a lie

Spain has just surprised Europe and the US with an unprecedented operation. It is not a simple rearmament, it is a historic naval coup

by

For years, the European rearmament it was more conversation than facts and Spain always appeared in the list of the lagging countries. Now after constant pressure from the United States and the climate of insecurity In Europe, the country has taken an unexpected turn with an unprecedented naval investment that has surprised even its allies. A leap that has not been seen in decades. Spain has activated one of the largest renewal processes of its Navy since the end of the Cold War, an investment of 5.5 billion euros for a plan that combines the incorporation of 37 new warships and four submarines of new generation with the deep modernization of units already in service. This is not a routine replacement, but rather a complete reconfiguration of naval capabilities for a more demanding strategic environment, where sea control, deterrence and the protection of sea routes have returned to the center of the security agenda. The submarine axis and a program. The technological heart of the plan is formed by the four S-80 submarines, developed by Navantiadesigned to return to the Spanish fleet an advanced submarine capacity in stealth, autonomy and combat. With air-independent propulsion, state-of-the-art sensors and an architecture designed for surveillance, intelligence and anti-submarine warfare missions, these units represent a qualitative leap which places the Spanish Navy at an operational level comparable to that of the large European navies, with a delivery schedule that extends until 2030. Submarine S-8 Frigates, ships and balance. The renewal is not limited to the underwater field. The program includes five F-110 frigates multi-mission design, designed to operate in high intensity scenarios, together with the modernization of the F-100 frigates to extend its useful life for two more decades. Added to this are new action ships maritime with anti-submarine capabilities, which seeks to maintain a balance between new generation platforms and proven units, avoiding an operational vacuum during the transition. F-110 Frigate Logistics as a multiplier. A key part of the effort is focused on logistical and technological support. The construction of a new Supply Ship of Combat, the update of minehunters, the incorporation of hydrographic vessels and a specific platform electronic warfare They reflect a broader vision of naval power, where sustaining prolonged operations, gathering information, and dominating the electromagnetic spectrum is as important as direct combat. Geopolitics and deterrence. There is no doubt, this rearmament responds to an international context more unstablemarked due to open conflicts in Europe, tensions in the Mediterranean and the Sahel and greater competition between powers. For a country with a strategic position between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, strengthening the fleet is not only a matter of prestige, but deterrent credibility and real capacity to protect own and allied interests within the NATO framework. Industry, employment and autonomy. Beyond the military level, the program aims to have a direct impact about the naval industry Spanish. The aim is most likely to consolidate a technological fabric with high added value, in addition to generating qualified employment and reducing external dependencies in critical systems. If you also want, the development of the S-80 and of the new frigates It has also served as a catalyst for innovation in propulsion, sensors and combat systems, with effects that transcend the strictly defensive sphere. Spain on the board. The last reflection that comes out of the historic announcement is clear: with this investment sustained over time, Spain reinforces its role as a relevant actor in the European maritime securitya priori capable of contributing more decisively to international operations and the protection of the main lines of maritime communication. I already we had seen the last months in many other nations. In the case of Spain, it is not, or does not seem to be, a simple update of ships without further ado, but rather the confirmation that naval power is definitely once again a central pillar of defense policy in the 21st century. Image | Navy, A Guy Named NyalNavantia In Xataka | Spain may not have F-35, but it is about to make history by sea: it is called F110 and it is ready for any war In Xataka | The United Kingdom will be only the first client: Spain builds a colossus in Galicia to build warships like churros

It has been so windy in Spain that the wind turbines have been disconnected

by

Spain woke up this Wednesday, January 28, 2026, under the effects of a storm of cold, snow and wind that has gone beyond the collapses on the roads. The storm Kristin has not only covered in white the center of the Peninsulacausing major traffic jams and a rise in teleworking in Madrid, but has also forced the system operator, Red Eléctrica de España (REE), to execute emergency measures to prevent the electrical balance from being compromised. Two hours of tension. Between 08:00 and 10:00 in the morning, REE was forced to activate the call Active Demand Response Service (SRAD). The reason was a specific but severe mismatch between generation and available demand. According to operator datathe system suffered a deficit of just over 2 gigawatts (GW). The forecast pointed to an operating power of 38,526 MW, but reality remained at a peak of 36,517 MW at 08:50 hours. This imbalance, which is technically known as a problem in the so-called “morning ramps“was due to a paradoxical phenomenon: excess wind. Although wind power is a key piece of the electricity mix, when gusts exceed certain safety thresholds, the wind turbines must be disconnected to avoid structural damage. The “wind blackout.” This phenomenon made the actual production would plummet to 7,500 MW, compared to the 12,500 MW initially planned. Added to this factor was a “secondary effect” from Portugal, where the storm also caused havoc, forcing imports to be reduced of electricity to Spain from 2,300 MW to just 800 MW. As wind energy expert Sergio Fernández Munguía explains on their social networksthis disconnection is not an anomaly, but rather an automatic protection mechanism. In situations of extremely strong winds, higher than the operating limits of the wind turbines – around 25 meters per second, about 90 kilometers per hour – the turbines are stopped preventively to guarantee their integrity. A physical limit that makes extreme wind an operational risk factor for renewable generation. The “red button” for the industry. The SRAD is the successor to the old “interruptibility”. This is a mechanism included in Operation Procedure (OP) 7.5 which allows REE order large industrial consumers to temporarily reduce or stop their consumption to relieve the network and guarantee reserve levels. Around thirty companies from different sectors and sizes participate in the service, with a minimum demand of 1 MW. These companies receive a reward both for being available and for each effective activation. In the last auction, held on November 28, 2025, 1,725 ​​MW were awarded for the first half of 2026, with a total cost of 255 million euros that ends up having an impact on consumers’ electricity bills. This Wednesday’s execution took place in two blocks. The first, 865 MW, at a price of 116.47 euros per MWh; and a second block of 860 MW at 120.90 euros per MWh. In total, 1,725 ​​MW of industrial power was paralyzed, the maximum available in this period. The role of gas and criticism of the system. Given the fall of wind power and practically no solar production at those early hours, the system depended on gas backup. The combined cycles went from generating about 3,000 MW at 6:00 in the morning to more than 8,000 MW at 9:00. However, this effort was not enough to fully offset the loss of renewable generation. According to industry sources consulted by The Energy Newspaperaround twenty combined cycle plants – around 8,000 additional MW – were not coupled or in immediate operational reserve, which prevented their rapid entry into the system and precipitated the order to stop industrial consumption. What can we expect in the coming months? Despite the spectacular nature of the measure, the official message is one of calm. Electrical Network has underlined in its statements that “the continuity of supply has not been compromised at any time” and that the activation of the SRAD has the sole objective of guaranteeing the system’s safety reserve levels. However, the scenario for 2026 poses relevant challenges. The operator estimates that during this first half of the year around twenty SRAD activation orders could be issued if similar stress situations are repeated. This mechanism is not the last link in the security chain, but it is a critical defense against abrupt power variations in a system with a high penetration of variable renewable energies. The challenge of intermittency. What happened this Wednesday once again puts on the table the challenges of operating an electrical system that is increasingly dependent on the weather. The rapid activation of the SRAD and the support of gas prevented greater evils, but the episode reinforces the need to have firm reserves – such as hydraulics and combined cycles – and industrial flexibility mechanisms capable of shielding the network against unforeseen meteorological events in the future. Image | Unsplash Xataka | Inspecting an offshore wind turbine no longer requires stopping it: the drone that uses AI to ‘x-ray’ moving blades

How is it possible that Spain is freezing in the middle of a ‘warmer than normal’ winter?

by

When you look out the window these days, it’s easy to ask yourself a very clear question: didn’t they say that This was going to be a warmer than normal winter.? With the storm Francis opening the door, followed by Ingrid and Joseph, and the snow level plummeting up to 500 meters in the northwest, the thermal sensation in January 2026 is far from “mild”. And although we can think of an error by the AEMET in its predictions at the beginning of the season, the problem is in the probabilities What was said. The AEMET in his initial prediction For this winter they did not use a crystal ball to ensure days of sun and beach, but rather they resorted to prediction models that showed a probabilistic situation: they placed almost all of Spain in the warm tertile. This means that there was a very high probability that the average temperature for the entire quarter was among the 33% warmest winters in the historical record. The chance of it being a colder winter was just 10%. When it comes to rainfall, the truth is that They didn’t get too wet at the AEMET by giving the same probability for it to be wetter, drier or normal than those of other years. He gave all of these 33%. January 2026. When we stop looking at the probabilistic models and move on to meteorological reality, we already see that there are substantial differences. And it is that Throughout this month we have had a severe entry of arctic air, notices in all communities and relevant snowfalls in the Cantabrian Mountains and the Pyrenees. It’s a bookish winter episode. Data is still missing. A freezing week does not make a cold winter, and everything indicates that after these storms that we are enduring right now, temperatures will rebalance between 1 and 3 degrees above the table. And for the AEMET this winter we have not yet had any cold wave which would mark the third consecutive year without them in Spain. According to the historical series, since 1975 the duration of cold waves on the peninsula has been reduced by 1.2 days per decade and that is why this winter is presented as one more to reduce this average in our climatological history. The NAO factor. The models certainly cannot see the climatological “day by day” coming very far in advance, since seasonal predictions, which are based on systems like ECMWFhave limited resolution. In this case we are talking about contextual tools for energy management or agriculture, not a “horoscope” to know if we will be able to ski without snow in the mountains. What the European winter climate largely depends on is the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and the Arctic Oscillation (AO). In this case a positive NAO indicates a westward, warm and humid circulation. But if we talk about a negative NAO, it translates into a blockage that allows polar air to escape to the south, which is what is happening to us right now. The problem. It is precisely because these coupled atmosphere-ocean models have a low ability to anticipate what phases the NAO will be in months in advance. They get the global thermal signal very well, such as background warming, but it is difficult for them to see the specific sequence of cold entries. A change of pattern. The debate about whether the “AEMET fails” with its predictions usually hides a deeper climate reality. And a “warm winter” in the current context of climate change does not mean the disappearance of winter, but rather it means that mild days and mild minimum temperatures are becoming more frequent, and cold waves are less common and less lasting. Next weeks. If we look beyond this week full of water we find ourselves again faced with uncertainty. According to the prediction made by the AEMETit is expected that for the week of February 2 to 8 a similar meteorological pattern will continue with Atlantic storms at our altitude, so there would be water throughout all of Spain. What the models predict, although everything can change, is that it will be presented in the west of the peninsula an extremely wet period over the next two weekswith rainfall that would be counted per liters of water in very specific areas of Spain and Portugal. In Xataka | We have always believed that London is very rainy and that Barcelona is not. The only problem is that it’s a lie

Technology salaries in Spain do not depend on the skills of the employee. They depend on the type of company

by

The technological salaries in Spain They no longer depend so much on how good you are at programming, but on the type of company you work for. The same senior profile can earn from figures typical of a small traditional SME to salaries that compete with the best engineers at Google or Meta, just for changing the type of company. At least that theory is what emerges from a salary analysis carried out by the technological employment platform Manfred, based on the observations of a former Uber engineer: in technology there is not one type of salary, but there are three, and it depends on the type of company in which you work. The “trimodal” model of technological salaries. The “trimodal” concept explains that the technology salary distribution It does not form a uniform continuous line that brings together the entire sector, but rather three distinct groups with little overlap between them. Depending on what type of company you are working for, this is how good your salary will be. The analysis is based on the observations of Gergely Orosz, former head of engineering at Uber, who analyzed on his blog the distribution of technological salaries in Europe and highlights that these groups arise from how each company decides to compare itself with the competition when setting compensation. If an SME only needs to compete against other SMEs, their salaries will be lower than those of large corporations that want to compete among themselves. Manfred has adapted that model to the reality of salaries in Spain and shows that a senior engineer can earn from 35,000 euros to 130,000 euros gross annually depending on his company group, even carrying out a job with similar responsibilities. This division makes individual talent matter less than the company’s salary strategy, creating huge gaps for equivalent profiles. Trimodal distribution of salaries in Spain. Source: Manfred Group 1: local companies with technology as support. The companies in the first group see technology as an internal service, similar to an IT department and, at a salary level, they are only compared with close competitors in your sector. In Spain, Manfred describes them as consultancies and large non-digital corporations, with basic selection processes and very hierarchical structures. This first group presents the greatest labor concentration of all of them, but offers the lowest salary rangeplacing 40,000 euros at its most common average. Given that their market is local, their salary structures are within the usual margins in Spain. In this group, the work is predictable, with a good balance between work and personal life, but without significant variable incentives, beyond a possible 10% of the base salary linked to the company’s performance. Group 2: “Scaleups” and technology companies. The second group brings together companies that compete with the entire local and some international technological fabric, raising their salary offers to attract talent or capture it among your competitors. This group includes technological startups that have already surpassed their maturity and are now seeking both national and international growth, with tougher and greater hiring processes. emphasis on autonomy. The salaries of these companies no longer only compete for the best talent at a local level, but also expand it to a European level, which is why they usually offer salaries above 60,000 euros and offer bonuses of up to 20% of the base salary in cash and shares to more experienced engineers, although not always on a general basis. That is, their remuneration is slightly above the average in Spain. Group 3: giants competing on a global scale. Companies in the third group measure themselves with the international market, attracting talent from anywhere in the world. We are talking about jobs in large technology companies such as Amazon, Uber, Google or Meta, as well as large financial entities that are developing large technological infrastructures. In this group they are shuffled international level salaries in order to attract the best qualified talent regardless of their place of origin. However, to access these positions you also have to overcome much more competitive selection processes. These firms offer salary ranges above 100,000 euros and cash bonuses of around 40% or 50% of the base salary are offered for those employees who achieve all their objectives and actions for all levels, even for junior employees. Not everything is money, what career do you want? Beyond money, each group offers a very different style of work. In Group 1, local companies prioritize stability and work-life balance, with schedules that allow for some flexibilityin addition to offering a greater number of job offers. Instead, Group 3 of global giants brings greater instabilitywith frequent rounds of layoffs when you don’t meet expectations and high turnover because they pay so much to attract only the best. Teleworking is a common practice in Groups 1 and 2, but the large corporations in Group 3 practically they have removed it of their offers and sometimes ask to move close to their main offices in Madrid or Barcelona. The number of job offers in Groups 2 and 3 are much lower than those in Group 1, so it is also more complicated to access a company with these characteristics, making it difficult to jump from one company to another within that same group. In Xataka | The harsh reality of salaries in Spain: the most common gross salary in 2023 did not exceed 16,000 euros per year Image | Unsplash (Sigmund)

now they are 60% of the food that Spain buys

by

Spain has changed in many aspects in the last decade, but in few places has a transformation been experienced as rapid and radical as on supermarket shelves. And all on account of the white label. If the ugly duckling of the retail national, a concept associated with a cheap product of questionable quality has come to conquer the baskets (and wallets) of families. We Spaniards are increasingly betting on items from Hacendado, Auchan or Seleqtia compared to other similar ones that are sold with labels other than supermarkets. So much so that if we talk about the food sector, white label dominated last year. 60.5% value sharewith a growth rate much higher than that of brands associated with external manufacturers. Eating the market. The data starts from a study on large consumption carried out by the consulting firm Circana and advanced by EFE. And although it is in tune with other previous ones that reflect the white label boom in the retail Spanish, but that doesn’t stop it from being striking. In 2025, foods sold under “distributor brands” (those directly associated with supermarkets, such as Hacendado in the case of Mercadona or Auchan with Alcampo) accounted for 60.5% in value share. That is, they took six out of every ten euros spent in that niche. Growing faster. The data is conclusive, but is completed with another also recorded by Circa. It’s not just that private labels take up a lot of the money we spend on food when we go to the supermarket. It’s just that they are hoarding more and more. In 2025, spending on these types of items registered a year-on-year growth of 6.3%a striking percentage for three reasons. First because the value of its rivals marketed with a “manufacturer’s brand” grew much less, 1.4%. Second, because that 6.3% doubles the increase in the price of the shopping basket as a whole, which closed 2025 with an increase of 3%. The third reason is that with this increase, private label foods stand out as those that evolve best among all the product categories that are integrated into the “mass consumption”the label with which experts refer to items that are consumed on a massive and daily basis. Are there more indicators? Yes. And they all point in a more or less similar direction. For example, the study indicates that if we talk about general sales of “mass consumption”, excluding fresh products, the market share of the private label is around 51.7% compared to 48.3% for its manufacturer rivals. That does not mean that Hacendado, Seleqtia and other similar brands rule all branches of the sector. In fact, there is one in particular in which we Spaniards continue to opt mostly for brands that have nothing to do with supermarkets: beverages. In it 66.2% of family spending of 2025 has gone to manufacturer brands compared to 33.8% of private label. What does that mean? In practice, when we want to buy a soft drink or a bottle of water, we mainly choose recognized brands, such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi or Bezoya or Font Vella, rather than those from Dia, Lidl or Eroski. The war of the brands. Circa’s data is just a brushstroke in a much larger picture: the one that has been showing for years the growth of the white label in Spain. The data may vary from study to study, but the trend is always the same. If years ago we customers had reservations about resorting to the supermarkets’ own assortment, those doubts seem to have evaporated. A few years ago Kantar Worldpanel published a report which showed that in 2021 17.2% of customers filled their basket only with white brands, in 2022 it was already 19.5% and in 2021 21.3%. If we talk about spending, during that period Hacendado and other similar brands went from accounting for 42% to 48%. Other analysis published by The National suggest that in a matter of a decade (between 2013 and 2023) the market share of the brands controlled by the supermarkets themselves increased by 11.2 percentage points. Standing out in Europe. The white label has been the protagonist of such a boom in Spain (in 2024 it was already dominating more than 50% of the shopping basket in volume) that has made our country stand out in Europe. Last year Simon-Kucher he wondered how many Spaniards buy this type of items “exclusively” and discovered that the answer is 26%. It is the highest percentage, along with France. In the Netherlands they are 25%, in the United Kingdom 20% and in Germany 19%. If we also include those who “predominantly” bet on these products in their basket (not just exclusively), the figure shoots up to 64%, six points above France and far from the rest of the countries. “The high sensitivity to price and changes in purchasing habits have led to private label becoming the first choice for most households,” explained to Expansion Javier Rubio, from the Simon-Kucher firm. But… Why? This boom responds to several factors. One, key one, is what the consultant comments on: the price and the influence it has had on our shopping basket in recent years, marked by inflation. However, other relevant aspects come into play and have more to do with the commercial strategy of supermarkets, the places where we fill the refrigerator. In 2024 Promarca calculation that in the previous five years the presence of white brands on the shelves of the main supermarkets had increased by 13%. On the contrary, third-party brands decreased by around 23%. The association not only detected the disappearance of thousands of items with non-supermarket labels, it also verified that those that remained were charged more expensive on average. “The public price of manufacturer brand products set by the distribution is between 5% and 160% more expensive than that of private label brands,” warned. Whether your estimates are correct or not, the truth is that we buy more private label because we have it more at hand. Three chains, … Read more

Going to the mountains to go hiking is increasingly popular in Spain. And those who are suffering are the golden eagles

by

Go on the weekend to take a route through the countryside It is a plan that can be very playful and, above all, healthy for us humans. But… What happens to the native fauna of the area? This is a question that It’s starting to resonate a lot on the internet.by focusing on the impact that our presence in the mountains can have on the most emblematic species of Spain such as the golden eagle or the partridge that have begun to have a lesser presence. A technological solution. The main idea that was in mind was that the animals were crashing into the hikers and causing great damage to their presence on the mountain. But to solve this mystery, biologists chose to put a GPS device on the eagles to monitor what they were doing. And the reality is that they are not crashing into us, but rather they are fleeing. The result. In this way, when it is confirmed that we do not have any type of collision with the eagles that could respond to their change in behavior, we have to go where they go when we humans are in the mountains. The University of Valencia in 2019 led this investigationdetecting that without a doubt there is a “weekend effect.” This effect can be seen in telemetry data which shows that during Saturdays and Sundays, the eagles are forced to modify their hunting routes. All this to avoid humans who, among other things, may be scaring away their targets on the ground. A greater expense. When these birds have to go to other areas to look for food because of hikers, they have to cover a longer distance than they are normally used to. This only means greater physiological stress and energy expenditure that can compromise their reproduction or survival, even if they never touch a human. But in addition, this translates into a situation known as ‘Landscape of Fear’, where the animal perceives the human not as a physical obstacle, but as a potential predator, which triggers its stress and cortisol levels, affecting its ability to breed. The real threats. To understand the real danger that these birds are in, we must look at the different mortality statistics in Spain. In this case, although a sedentary lifestyle causes great discomfort to the animals, the causes of death are much more industrial and violent. According to the studies collected, such as those of the GER-EA projectthe main cause of death is collision with power lines and electrocution. This is followed by poisoning and shooting, with 13 and 8% respectively. But what is clear is that humans are not a direct cause of death due to collisions with us when we are sedentary in the countryside. Distinction matters. Stating that eagles collide with hikers may sound spectacular, but it diverts attention from the real problem that we can solve as mountain users. The study in Ecology and Evolution (2025) and data from Ecologists in Action They point out that the problem is Yontrusion into breeding areas. Climbing, off-road vehicles and off-road hiking near the nests cause the adults to abandon the nest or the chicks, leaving them exposed to the cold or predators. Images | Mathew Schwartz In Xataka | Japan has been looking at its bears in fear for months due to a record wave of attacks. Now he looks at them with something else: gluttony

Spain is going to freeze this weekend

by

As Samu Rivas saidthe image that heads this piece does not reflect what is going to happen in 240 hours. It reflects what is going to happen in three days and that is the key to everything that is going to happen. Because the four big models (GFS/ECMWF/ICON/GEM) seem to have agreed: cold, rain and a very — very — busy weekend. What has happened? What is going to happen? What has happened is that an anticyclonic block has formed between Greenland and the Scandinavian peninsula. It is a large wall of high pressure that will interrupt the zonal flow and force the polar jet to lower latitude. From there, there were doubts about what was going to happen. But those doubts have been dissipating: everything seems to indicate that the jet will descend so low that it will focus directly on Spain, guiding fronts and cold masses from the north. Greeting Ingrid. According to Roberto Grandathe first fronts will affect us starting tomorrow and, from that moment, the storm Ingrid will not stop sending us “various bands of instability throughout Friday and the weekend, bringing rain, wind and snow.” What does this mean? That a mass of maritime polar air will invade the Peninsula from the northwest. That will cause temperatures to plummet to -2 degrees on Friday, but it will also mean that it will rain (a lot) throughout the Atlantic slope. The snow level on Friday will reach 500 meters. That is, the risk is going to be high. And the weekend? If the models are correct, on Saturday we may see snow in many inland provincial capitals and on Sunday rain will be widespread throughout the country (except the Mediterranean coast). Are we facing a new Filomena? It doesn’t seem plausible to meet with the amounts of snow that we saw in Madrid in January 2021, but obviously it is not impossible (unlikely, however). What is true is that every once in a while we expect an ‘Ice and Snow Apocalypse’ and most of the time nothing happens. The important thing is to remember that a big snowfall is not necessary for Spain to collapse and the problems to grow. We better be attentive. Image | Meteociel In Xataka | After the cold comes something much more problematic: the explosive cyclogenesis that AEMET predicts for the Mediterranean

Spain is stopping making its potato tortillas at home. And that is why the Mercadona supplier is growing by 20%

by

After decades of debate Spain hasn’t decided yet Whether or not the tortilla should contain onion, what thousands and thousands of Spaniards do seem to be clear about is that the ideal is for someone else to cook it. More and more people prefer to go from peeling potatoes, heating oil and making their own tortillas to buying them directly at the supermarket. And so is making gold to one of Mercadona’s allied companies, a Navarrese firm which in 2025 increased its turnover by 20% to reach almost 200 million euros and this year it hopes to make another growth spurt to reach 230. It is the financial data of a company in the food sector, but it also tells us a lot about the market and our consumer habits. Sincebollists V.S. concebollistas. It is not easy to classify the Spanish population into tight compartments, but there is something that does not fail: the majority of 49.4 million of people who live in this country can be defined as sincebollists either concebollistas depending on whether you prefer the potato omelette (one of the great emblems of the native cuisine) with or without onion. The curious thing is that both seem to increasingly opt to abandon the stove and buy ready-made tortillas. At least that’s what they suggest. the latest data from Grupo Elaborados Naturales, Mercadona supplier and one of the largest tortilla manufacturers in the country. One figure: 197 million. The company presume that since its founding in 2006, it has managed to achieve “a dizzying pace” of growth of between 15 and 40% annually. 2025 has not been an exception. His last balance shows that last year it had a turnover of 197 million, 20% more than the previous year. This year it hopes to maintain that pace with another growth of 16.7% that will allow it to reach a turnover of around 230 million. As? Basically with your offer of refrigerated and frozen tortillas, although in the HORECA channel (the professional hospitality industry) also works with processed potatoes and vegetables. 2026, big. To achieve this growth, the company has redoubled its industrial muscle. The firm has dedicated approximately 40 million euros to strengthening its facilities, expanding its factory in Funes (Navarra) by 20,000 square meters and equipping itself with 12 new lines which will allow it to double the production capacity in that plant: from 300,000 units per day to 600,000. The company assures that it will also generate hundreds of jobs. In total, the company has three factories: Funes, dedicated to the production of tortillas; that of Corella (Navarra), which combines the manufacture of tortillas with prepared refrigerated potato-based dishes; and Aguilar del Río Alhama (La Rioja), where 150 people work dedicated to cooking migas and ‘fifth range’ foods (ready to eat) with vegetables. Apart from the national market, the company exports to a dozen and a half countries. The (long) shadow of Mercadona. Beyond its production capacity, there is one fact about the company that draws attention: its weight in the sector. Elaborados Naturales has reached a market share in the ‘potato tortillas’ category of 56% in large national distribution. This enormous footprint is better understood when knowing a key fact about the Navarrese company: its alliance with Mercadona. The firm is a supplier to the Juan Roig chain, which has in turn expanded throughout the sector until it has gained a market share of between 25 and 30%a percentage that has been reinforced thanks to its good rhythm of growth. More than just a business balance sheet. The balance sheet of Elaborados Naturales is nothing more than that: the balance sheet of a company in the food industry. If it is interesting to read beyond the company’s offices, it is because it connects with other underlying trends that are clearly identifiable in both the industry and Spanish society. For example, the growing demand of prepared foods. The latest data from the Ministry of Agriculture and Food (MITECO) they talk to us of an increase in the consumption of prepared dishes of around 6% while that of fish, fruits and vegetables declines. Much of it Of that demand is also satisfied in supermarkets. Rain of millions. A good example is Mercadona, which has seen how its line of ready-to-eat dishes has been taking over a growing gap in that business niche. Its success (also supported by white label) is in turn boosting its extensive ecosystem of suppliers, including Elaborados. In fact, the tortilla manufacturer is just one of the many companies that have seen their turnover grow by close to 20% in recent years driven largely by the commercial expansion of the Valencian chain. Images | Kent Wang (Flickr) and Natural Prepared In Xataka | Years ago Mercadona decided to conquer the market with its white brands. And that is making gold for some companies

Log In

Forgot password?

Forgot password?

Enter your account data and we will send you a link to reset your password.

Your password reset link appears to be invalid or expired.

Log in

Privacy Policy

Add to Collection

No Collections

Here you'll find all collections you've created before.