You consistently crave them, your kids are crazy about them and most chefs can’t live without them.
Parmesan cheese and Parma ham are immensely popular the world over. It’s truly remarkable that these two Italian ingredients are highly cherished products manufactured in a small Italian province, Parma.
THE CULINARY PLAYGROUND
For ordinary holidaymakers, there might not be anything much to write home about this humble agronomical city, population approximately 180,000, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy.
But for keen gastronomes or those in the food industry, the 260km² province, also home to Parmalat, a leading manufacturer of UHT milk and dairy products, and top pasta producer Barilla, is an important resource of world gastronomy.
The farmstead locality is a protected origin of Parmigiano Reggiano, internationally known as Parmesan cheese, and Prosciutto di Parma, or Parma ham. It also claims to be the origin of certain pasta dishes, including tortelli d’erbetta and anolini in brodo.
Confirming that Parma holds a pivotal position as the gourmet kitchen of the planet, the small town recently held one of the world’s largest food exhibitions.
The 17th Cibus International Food Exhibition, which took place in May at the Fiere di Parma Fairgrounds, is one of the most eminent affairs of the Italian agricultural food industry. The biannual event provides a platform for Italian food producers to meet their major clients, including distributors, importers and professionals in domestic and foreign markets.
Organised by Fiere di Parma, this year’s fair boasted 2,700 mostly Italian exhibitors, mostly from Italy. The awe-inspiring fair showcased 10,000 variations of mouthwatering, Italian-made pasta, cured meat, confectionery, fruit and vegetables, grocery items and beverages, and occupied 120,000m² over six halls.
The fair welcomed almost 100,000 visitors and participants during its four-day run, more than 12,000 of which were foreign buyers from 90 countries.
CO-OPERATE TO THRIVE
The key success of Parma’s agri-food industry is very much due to its strong artisan traditions, close-knit community and assiduous support from the government.
Ancient cheese maturation and processing traditions are used at Bertinelli Farm. All cheese wheels are individually examined by an expert from the consortium before they can be classified as DOP Parmigiano-Reggiano.
It is well-known that much of Italy's agricultural produce, including Parmesan cheese and Parma ham, is classified with a protected designation of origin (DOP) or protected geographical indication (PGI). The indication is regulated by the European Union to ensure products have genuine origin in the region, or possess qualities and characteristics that are exclusive to the geographical environment.
Without a strong consortium and co-operative networks, such regulations can be hard to stand by. The Emilia-Romagna region, with approximately 8,100 co-operatives in the agricultural sector, is listed among the world’s best-established mutual food networks.
Bertinelli Farm is one of the oldest producers of Parmesan cheese in the region, which contains 4,000 dairy farms. Founded in 1895, the family-run business follows ancient traditions of cheese maturation and processing, dating back 900 years, to make DOP Parmigiano-Reggiano. According to Nicola Bertinelli, a fourth-generation member of the farm, every wheel of Bertinelli’s Parmesan is made from 600 litres of milk from cattle fed by locally grown forage and attentively cared by cheese masters in the Parma countryside. To control quality, all cheese wheels are individually examined by an expert from the Parmigiano-Reggiano consortium. After inspection, a mark meaning it has met the DOP requirement is fire-branded onto the wheel. The farm also has a QR code system to keep track of information, such as batch, field and cattle numbers, and the date of production of each cheese wheel.
Another prime example of Parma’s strong artisan culture is Terry Ducali. Founded in 1964, the company is among 156 firms which constantly work to contribute to the world authentic prosciutto di Parma.
At Terry Ducali, pork legs come from its own breeding sites and are dry-cured according to a tradition from 100BC. Amid the province’s naturally perfumed microclimate air, hams are hung for three months during a resting phase before being put through the salting and maturation processes.
Before being given DOP classification and the prosciutto di Parma consortium’s Ducal Crown firebrand, the ham must be cured for at least one year and checked with a long horse-bone needle to assess its quality and maturity. Approximately 70% of the hams are consumed in Italy, while the remaining 30% are exported.
INTERNATIONAL POPULARITY
At the 2014 Cibus International Food Exhibition, the number of foreign buyers increased by 1,000 from the last fair, held in 2012, clearly showing rising favour worldwide of Italian cuisine. Relentless openings of Italian restaurants in Bangkok and increasing supermarket shelf space dedicated to Italian food are some of the greatest examples of this phenomenon.
Compared to the past, when Thais could only differentiate cheese from butter, some local consumers now can tell the difference between Parmesan and Gorgonzola — and buffalo mozzarella from that made of cow milk. Some may even prefer Parmesan cheese that’s been aged for 24 months, as opposed to 15.
“The appreciation of cheese worldwide has become much more sophisticated over the past years. People pay attention to the texture and balance of the aroma, not just the taste, of cheese. A good cheese may yield a hay scent, a grass scent, a tobacco scent, a sweet milky note or a volatile note of leather,” Bertinelli said.
Arin Chantamasruxsa, Central’s Food Hall’s general manager of operations, was among a dozen of food professionals from Thailand to visit the Parma trade fair.
“Food products from Italy are always at great demand in our stores. And to cater to the sophisticated needs of our consumers, we can never stop increasing the variety of authentic Italian products we import,” she said.
Best-sellers, she said, are chocolate, olive oil and cheese.
For Italy’s food industry to ensure its sustainability, there are always attempts to fight counterfeiting abroad. With financial and governmental support, Fiere di Parma will co-sponsor Italy’s large exhibition hall at the upcoming World Expo 2015, which will be held in Milan next year, to promote the authenticity of Italian-made produce.
At Terry Ducali, pork legs are hung for three months during a resting phase before being put through the salting and maturation processes. The ham must be cured for at least one year and checked to assess its quality and maturity before given Prosciutto di Parma consortium’s Ducal Crown firebrand.
