This traditional event linked to the Feira do Cocido will be held on Sunday, 25 January, and will be promoted by the Vía da Prata area, made up of the parishes of Botos, Donsión, A Xesta and Vilanova. It will subsequently be held on a rotating basis among the eight existing parish areas.
The Councillor for Festivals and the area, José Cuñarro, emphasises that this noble house, owned by the municipality, is an ideal venue for the staged recreation of this popular celebration.
The residents of Botos, Donsión, A Xesta and Vilanova will work together under the common name of Vía da Prata.
Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
The 26th edition of the Traditional Pig Slaughter, to be held on Sunday, 25 January 2026, will be the first in history to be organised by a parish area: that of Vía da Prata, explains José Cuñarro, Councillor for Festivals and the area.
It should be noted that this agreement was reached at the meeting held on 10 December between the government and the local councillors to decentralise activities to rural areas and bring services closer to the parishes. At that meeting, a draw was held for the areas of the Slaughter, which was decided as follows: Vía da Prata will organise it in 2026; Val do Arnego in 2027; Val do Deza in 2028; Entre Ríos in 2029; A Balouta in 2030; Alto de Vales in 2031; Val do Boi in 2032 and Carrio Sur in 2033. Thus, in this edition, the residents of Botos, Donsión, A Xesta and Vilanova will work together under the common name of the parish area of Vía da Prata.
Cuñarro reveals that ‘the Mouriscade mansion is the venue chosen to host the traditional recreation of the event, as it is an ideal space for this purpose’. ‘This was unanimously decided on 13 December at a meeting between the parish council leaders of Vía da Prata and myself,’ he emphasises.
The mansion is an outstanding example of rural stately architecture in the municipality of Lalín, built of granite masonry and featuring functional elements such as balconies, external staircases and adjoining outbuildings for agricultural use (granary, chapel, oven and a traditional village kitchen with a wood-burning stove and fireplace in the same room). It is an example of a noble house linked to a farm which, like other large houses of the period, served a dual purpose: residential as the main home of the owner family and productive as a centre for managing land and property.
This property is currently owned by the municipality, along with other disused properties linked to the Mouriscade estate, since the Provincial Council transferred them to the Town Council in August 2024, a procedure that was signed before a notary.
It is worth noting that this year marks two decades since the slaughter took place in the same location, organised by the parishes of Doade and Vilanova (in 2006).
Thanks to the local councilors of Vía da Prata
The councillor ‘would like to personally thank the local councillors of the four parishes that make up Vía da Prata for their willingness to help, as the draw took place less than a week ago, and the day after it was held, they called me to express their willingness to collaborate fully in organising the slaughter, given that there is little time left before it takes place’.
"The organisation will be carried out by the four parishes under the single name of Vía da Prata because we want to prioritise and highlight the parish areas. Although the local councillors (Luis Rodríguez Rozas, from Botos; Antonio Pereiro Estévez, from Donsión; Gumersindo Ferradás López from A Xesta and Manuel García Gómez from Vilanova) will hold a meeting for each parish (Botos and Donsión will hold their meetings this Friday 19th and A Xesta and Vilanova during this weekend), on Friday 2 January 2026 there will be a meeting at 8.30 pm at the Botos social club with the four local councillors and residents from all the parishes who wish to participate in the organisation of the slaughter to distribute the tasks," he points out.
Cuñarro points out that ‘organising the slaughter at the Mouriscade mansion will also be useful if, for any reason, any area does not have a suitable place to carry out the slaughter, as they will have this property, which belongs to the Town Council, at their disposal to do so.’
He states that ‘we would like to invite all parish areas and the town centre to come to Mouriscade on 25 January to collaborate and help with one of the most important and traditional tasks in all households, as it traditionally ensured food for the whole year.’ In addition, Vía da Prata is offering Val do Arnego to the residents of the area that will organise the slaughter in 2027 if they want to have a more direct insight into how a slaughter is organised, so that they can attend the preparatory meetings for this year's celebration in the days leading up to it.
