This Christmas, sales have been the best ever, surpassing 336.000 euros.
In ten years, RAC1 and Torrons Vicens have raised €2,442,789, entirely donated to Hospital Sant Joan de Déu for the research of rare diseases.
From left to right: Àngel Velasco, Eulàlia Carbonell, Dr. Joan Comella, Toni Clapés, and Xavi Pérez.
RAC1 and Torrons Vicens have reached their tenth edition with a new fundraising record. This time, they raised €336,833, 6% more than the previous edition and nearly three times the amount raised in the first edition. Once again, this is the highest figure obtained since the beginning of the project, which has raised a total of €2,442,789 since 2015. The funds from this Christmas edition will be entirely allocated to the Únicas Project, an initiative by the Sant Joan de Déu Hospital aimed at providing patients with access to the latest advances in treatments and cutting-edge research in rare diseases.
The announcement was made this afternoon during the Versió RAC1 program with Toni Clapés, who, together with Torrons Vicens' CEO and owner, Àngel Velasco, RAC1's managing director, Eulàlia Carbonell, and RAC1's content director, Xavi Pérez, handed over the check to Dr. Joan Comella, director of Research and Innovation at the Sant Joan de Déu Hospital.
Support for Rare Diseases
Thanks to the funds raised in recent editions, more than 25 research projects and clinical trials have been financed, involving over 20 researchers from different fields. It has also been possible to fund various research profiles, strengthening the work carried out by several groups associated with the Hospital Sant Joan de Déu (HSJD).
In addition, with last year’s campaign, the Hospital Sant Joan de Déu introduced a new initiative: it organized a call to allocate funds to 10 research projects based on objective criteria. This significantly enhances the impact of donations, broadens knowledge, increases the number of researchers, and accelerates research progress.
However, over the years, what researchers request the most is the ability to attract talent. "The effort is global, and the solutions can be applied anywhere; therefore, we must invest more and better, and attract the best talents to research these diseases that affect our children," says Dr. Joan Comella, Director of Research and Innovation at Hospital Sant Joan de Déu.
For this reason, the funds raised will help finance this talent, supporting researchers in continuing cutting-edge research on rare diseases.
The new initiative aims to fund contracts for researchers, always in collaboration with centers of excellence, with the goal of answering the questions that still have no answers. This is about bringing hope through research and helping the more than 400,000 children with rare diseases in Catalonia.
10 Editions of Breaking Records
In 2024, the range of charity nougat offered by RAC1 and Torrons Vicens included three flavors: the classic hazelnut praline with wafer and orange, creamy almond with cookies, and brownie with pecan nuts. Àngel Velasco, the manager and owner of Torrons Vicens, stated: "We live in a very charitable country, and the more varied the nougat, the easier it is to keep growing."
Since the first edition in Christmas 2015, each year’s funds raised have surpassed those of the previous year. During Christmas 2024, 336,833 euros were raised, compared to 318,453 euros in 2023, 289,644 euros in 2022, 279,338 euros in 2021, 272,299 euros in 2020, 263,041 euros in 2019, 220,440 euros in 2018, 186,102 euros in 2017, 156,375 euros in 2016, and 120,264 euros in 2015.
In total, 2,442,789 euros have been raised for research into rare diseases.
