Brožiai

Brožiai - a village in Klaipėda district municipality, part of Vežaičiai eldership, which includes 33 villages. Brožiai is located 7 km from the main national highway, near the road from the eldership centre - Vežaičiai (8 km) to Veiviržėnai (6 km). In 2022 there were 4,569 residents in Vežaičiai eldership, in Brožiai - 83 residents. As the village's population began to decline, with young people migrating to cities, the only school in Brožiai was closed in 2009. The resulting demographic situation determined the local residents' livelihood - the development and cultivation of horticulture. This prompted them to cooperate with Brožiai community, which promotes sustainable local food economy. In 2021, with the funding from the LEADER program, the initiative of Brožiai village community led to the establishment of a short food supply chain, involving local farmers, educational institutions, and Klaipėda district municipality. This laid the groundwork for the development of a smart village farming model. Brožiai community has established a vegetable processing and broth production manufactory, collaborating with all participants in the agricultural food sector, aiming to increase the supply of sustainable products and enable farmers to process their harvested products. The community not only supplies healthier food products to schools, but also carries out educational activities - providing students with knowledge about sustainable food and conducting educational-tasting programs for public. The future goals of Brožiai community are to establish an ORGANIC food supply chain, improving the distribution and sales of local organic products, making strides to enhance visibility and accessibility; establish a food policy laboratory by preparing a more advanced smart village strategy. With 17 jobs created, Brožiai community is a successful example of local community entrepreneurship. It not only attracts interest and support from local residents but is widely recognized nationwide for its activities.

Country

Lithuania

Type

inner peripheries

Degree of urbanization

rural

population of 4569

Check out the village strategy:

ADVANCED BROŽIAI VILLAGE STRATEGY

Village Solutions

1. Short food supply chain. 2. Community entrepreneurship. 3. Healthy food.

Brožiai village community organizes a short food supply chain: buys fresh vegetables from local farmers, processes, packs and/or freezes them; buys chicken, beef and other sort of bones from local farmers and/or small meat processors, boils them into concentrated broths in a pressure cooker; supplies products to educational institutions, households.

Economy

Contact Information

Brožių kaimo bendruomenė, broziu.bendruomene@gmail.com

http://www.broziuvirtuve.lt/

Chairwoman Riaukienė Vida, broziu.bendruomene@gmail.com