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Food markets played an important role in Spanish cities in the XIXth Century as a symbol of new forms of trade and iron architecture. With the arrival of new building materials and changes in shopping habits, these old markets were demolished or replaced by more modern ones. Nevertheless, the preserved markets became part of the industrial heritage of the post-industrial city. This text analyses three of them (the San Miguel market in Madrid, the Lanuza market in Zaragoza and the Born market in Barcelona) as examples of the intervention criteria applied in their remodelling and of the tensions involved in actions of preservation and refunctionalisation when deciding whether to give priority to the patrimonial dimension of these assets or to other interests (urban, ideological or touristic).