MENORCA
Economy

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Economy

Some hills are terraced and only in the south the fields are irrigated. Agricultural crops are: grain, flax, vegetables, sweet potatoes, melons, figs, pomegranates, almonds and (wine) grapes.

Typical for the Balearic Islands and therefore also for Menorca are the stone walls that surround cornfields and meadows and divide the land into countless parcels. The dairy industry is leading in agriculture; there are still about 30,000 (black and white) cows grazing on the island.

Schoes Menorca_{Photo: Oliver Griebl CC 3.0 Unported no changes made}

It is worth mentioning that shoe industry can look back on more than a century of tradition. At the end of the 19th century, almost 40% of the population made a living from footwear manufacture. The most famous shoe factories are at Alaior and Ferreries. For decades, all kinds of leather fashion accessories have been made in Menorca; bags, vests, belts and jackets. Typical Menorcan are the "abarcas", traditional leather sandals with soles made from car tire. Other typical products of Menorca are fashion accessories, chic fabrics and ceramics. One of the largest fashion accessories fairs in Europe is held annually in Mahón.

For a village like Fornells fishing and lobster fishing are the main source of livelihood, besides tourism of course.

Queso Mahon, Menorca_{Photo: English Wikipedia user Asphaltbuffet CC 3.0 no changes made}

Famous Menorcan products are the "queso Mahón" or Mahón cheese (Alaior is the cheese center) and the "salsa mahonesa", the mayonnaise named after the capital Mahón.

In 1756 French troops defeated the English. The French army commander Richelieu held a feast in honor of this and asked the cook to make an exquisite sauce. Prepared from egg yolk, olive oil, lemon juice and herbs, the salsa mahonesa became a culinary world hit under the name mayonnaise.

Basic ingredients for a mayonnaise (Salsa Mahonese)_{Photo: Public domain}

There has been an airport in Menorca since 1969, which was extensively modernized in the 1990s. There are ferry connections all year round between Mahón and Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca, Valencia and Alcúdia in Mallorca.

The main thoroughfare is the connection between Ciutadella in the west and Mahón in the east (49 km). In less than an hour you can cross the entire island in this way. There are also important, modernized roads between Es Mercadal and Fornells and between Fornells and Mahón. For the rest, the road network consists of small roads that run like bones to the villages on the coast. Many of the bays on the north and south coast can only be reached on foot or by bicycle.

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Sources

Kelly, T. / Menorca
Kosmos-Z&K

Klöcker, H. / Menorca
Deltas

Mallorca & Ibiza, Menorca & Formentera
APA Publications

Montserrat, J. / Reiseführer Menorca : ein Streifzug durch die Insel
Triangle Postals

CIA - World Factbook

BBC - Country Profiles

Last updated March 2024
Copyright: Team The World of Info