Anfaco Museum of the Canning Industry

ANFACO, the Spanish Association of Canned Fish and Seafood Manufacturers has its headquarters at the port of Vigo where it opened a museum in 2004. Its purpose is to develop awareness of seafood and to show the significance of the canning industry in Galicia. The museum has four main sections. The first portrays the pioneering era, the preservation of sardines from the late eighteenth century, illustrated by documents, packaging and advertisements. The second shows the sardine era of the mid-twentieth century when there were numerous factories in Vigo. It focusses on the technology of canning, on the export trade and on the lives of factory workers. The third section shows the development of new technology after the creation of ANFACO’s Research and Technical Department in 1949, and features a reconstruction of the department’s first laboratory. The final section is a range of facilities including an auditorium and reception rooms.