Yaiza Rimada

42 years old, a native of Asturias (Sariego), she set up La Saregana with her father in 2009 in the wake of a family livestock business going back generations. “The prices that were being paid for milk weren't making enough, and we had to reinvent ourselves”. She started out making yoghurt and cottage cheese, and people liked the products. A lot of work, help from her husband when her father retired, and the passion of someone who loves their work consolidated this chimera, which now produces full-milk and skimmed-milk natural yoghurts, with strawberry, lime-lemon, mandarin and blueberries, and also cheese (natural "Quesu del Duernu", with fine herbs and "Encarnau") and natural butters. 

The entire range is 100% natural and artisan, with no artificial additives, produced in a system devised by Rimada. “We're a small enterprise that takes extreme care with each step in the process”. This means production - milk from their own inseminated cows - and also distribution, exclusively to small outlets, restaurants and environmental markets in Gijón. The Asturian smiles when asked about her position in the company: “I milk the cows, check the process, do the administration and handle contacts with customers. So, if you want to put 'boss' …”.