Chef João Marreiros, founder of the acclaimed Loki restaurant in Portimão, has thrown his weight behind the STOP UP12 civic movement, calling for the protection of one of the Algarve’s most fragile and prized coastal areas: Albandeira, in the municipality of Lagoa.
The move comes amid growing concern over a large-scale tourist development planned for the area. STOP UP12 opposes the UP12 plan, which envisages hotels, aparthotels and holiday homes totalling 1,030 beds along Albandeira Beach, in Caramujeira. Critics argue the project threatens the natural habitats, biodiversity and character of this stretch of the Algarve coastline.
In a statement sent to the regional press, Chef Marreiros, a native of Monchique, said his connection to the Algarve’s land and sea runs deep.
“I grew up between the mountains and the ocean, catching octopus with my grandmother and gathering wild plants,” he said, adding that these early experiences are the foundation of his cuisine and vision.
“For me, sustainability isn’t a trend – it’s survival. Everything I cook depends on the health of this land and this sea. The coast isn’t just a backdrop. It is memory, sustenance, identity and future. If we lose it to yet another development, we don’t just lose the landscape: we lose knowledge, balance and possibilities.”
At Loki, Marreiros has cultivated an intimate dining experience rooted in seasonality, local produce and respect for ecosystems. His commitment to sustainable gastronomy earned the restaurant the Boa Cama Boa Mesa Guide Sustainability Award in 2024.
STOP UP12, a civic movement founded in late 2023, aims to protect Albandeira and its wildlife. In 2024, the group commissioned an environmental assessment from the A Rocha association, which identified habitats and species protected under the EU Habitats Directive, arguing that the area should receive formal protection.
In a region increasingly shaped by property development, water scarcity and the gradual erosion of local identity, Marreiros said unlimited development is not progress. “Defending landscape, biodiversity and heritage isn’t incompatible with the future. It is the condition for that future to have value,” he said.
By joining STOP UP12, Marreiros hopes to mobilise public awareness, emphasising that some places, once destroyed, cannot be restored. “You don’t protect the Algarve with slogans. You protect it with limits, courage and concrete choices. What is at stake in Albandeira is not just a beach. It is the soul of a region,” he added.
Legal milestone
The campaign recently secured a legal milestone. On January 23, 2026, the Court of Loulé granted an injunction sought by STOP UP12 against Lagoa Municipal Council, halting the drafting of the detailed plan for Albandeira. According to the association, the injunction prevents the council from holding meetings with other bodies or approving the proposed plan.
“Whilst this is not a victory, it is excellent news for achieving our objective of protecting the territory in all its aspects – biodiversity, landscape, geology, people and ways of life,” the movement said in a statement.
