Amurrio announces the Artzain Eguna contests with 2,800 euros in prizes

The Amurrio City Council has announced the competitions for Artzain Eguna, the shepherd’s fair to be held on September 20, 2026, in the town, with a budget of 2,800 euros in prizes aimed at boosting the agricultural and livestock sector and, in particular, the sheep farming of the region. The call is published via an extract of the decree of August 21, 2026, issued by the mayor, José Ramón Molinuevo Laña, in the Official Gazette of the Historical Territory of Álava (BOTHA) number 101, dated September 4, 2026, with reference 2026-02499.

The call is processed in accordance with articles 17.3.b and 20.8.a of the General Subsidies Law 38/2003, of November 17, and the full text can be consulted in the National Subsidies Database with identifier BDNS 926043. The regulating legislation is the Regulatory Ordinance of the Artzain Eguna Competitions, published in BOTHA number 80, dated July 15, 2026, and the prizes will be paid from budget item 41903.480 of the Amurrio City Council.

Three competitions under a competitive bidding process

The fair, organized by the departments of Agriculture, Livestock and Forests and the Environment, brings together three contests resolved under a competitive bidding process:

• XXXII Interprovincial Latxa Breed Sheep Competition, which awards the two best lots of each group based on morphology, presence, and cleanliness.
• XIX Ruperto Casanueva Memorial Cheese Competition, which distinguishes the three best raw Latxa sheep milk cheeses based on flavor, texture, and appearance.
• XIII Popular Cheese Competition, in which citizens vote for the cheese they like most after tasting at least four of the participants.

Rules for the sheep competition

The sheep competition is open to livestock farmers from any municipality in the Historical Territory of Álava and from the Biscayan municipalities of Orduña and Orozko. Each farm may enter a maximum of one lot per section and one ram, and the animals must be in the fairgrounds before 9:30 a.m. on the day of the event.

• Up to twenty lots per section are admitted, with preference given to farms in the region and those whose primary activity is farming.
• Livestock must be identified and prove they come from a farm officially free of brucellosis and contagious agalactia.
• The organization subsidizes transport with 100 euros per lot and 30 euros per ram, and each non-winning participant receives a stipend of 40 euros if they compete in at least two sections.

Cheese, the protagonist of the fair

The Ruperto Casanueva Memorial Cheese Contest requires cheeses made with raw milk from Latxa sheep from the producer’s own farm, with a minimum maturation of two months, a casein plate, and a flock of at least 100 head of livestock. The evaluation is carried out by two jury panels designated by the Idiazabal Designation of Origin, the Artzai Gazta Association, and the Amurrio City Council, and the winners will be announced on the day of the fair around 1:30 p.m.

Registrations for the ovine and popular cheese contests are submitted through the electronic office or the City Council’s citizen service center until 1:00 p.m. on September 4, while those for the cheese contest are formalized at the headquarters of the Idiazabal Designation of Origin from August 15 until 1:00 p.m. on September 11. The resolution will be notified by certified mail within a maximum period of one week from the end of the application period.

The Artzain Eguna fair thus establishes itself as a showcase to recognize the work of the region’s shepherds, who maintain and improve Latxo livestock and offer products such as raw milk cheese and suckling lambs. With these contests, the Amurrio City Council reinforces its commitment to a livestock sector that supports the territory and promotes Latxa sheep grazing among the citizenry.

Source: Official Gazette of the Historical Territory of Álava (BOTHA), no. 101, September 4, 2026, section II – Local Administration (official reference: 2026-02499).