Parmigiano-Reggiano

Its Origins in the Middle Ages

In the Middle Ages the Benedictine and Cistercian monks, committed to finding a cheese that could last long, were the first producers: using the salt from the Salsomaggiore salt mines and the milk of the cows bred in the granges, i.e. the farms belonging to the monasteries, the monks obtained a dry paste cheese in large wheels suitable for long preservation.

The first evidence of the sale of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese dates back to 1200: a notarial deed drawn up in Genoa in 1254 is evidence of the fact that the Caseus Parmensis (the cheese from Parma) was already known in a city that was so far from its production area. In the 14th century trade developed as far as the Romagna, Piedmont and Tuscany regions, reaching also the ports of the Mediterranean Sea.

The Renaissance

In the Emilia region of the 15th century, feudal lords and abbeys contributed to the production increase of the Parma and Reggio plains that led to further economic development.

The wheel size increased reaching weights of up to 18kg each. The 16th century saw the development of the so called “vaccherie”, cowsheds, connected to a dairy to process the milk of the owner, as well as that of the share croppers that took turns to help the cheese master.

Parma, Modena and Reggio in the 17th Century

The need to protect the product on the market from other similar cheese led the Duke of Parma Ranuccio I Farnese to make the designation of origin official with a deed dated 7 August 1612. The deed defined the places from which the cheese called “from Parma” should come: this date marks the beginning of the history of the Designation of Origin, which is now acknowledged at a European level.

In the 18th century, the Duchies of Parma and Modena were hit by continuous wars that made cheese production difficult.

Modern History

Over the centuries, Parmigiano Reggiano has not changed its production method: today as in the Middle Ages, the product is made in a natural way without additives. At the beginning of 1900, some important innovations that are still relevant today were introduced, such as the use of fermented whey and steam heating.

On 27 July 1934 representatives of dairies in Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena and Mantua (right bank of the river Po), agreed on the need to approve a mark of origin for their cheese.

From STRESA to the CAP

After the war, new elements started stimulating the relaunch of Parmigiano Reggiano after the Stresa Conference in 1951 on the denomination of cheese. The Italian law on designations of origin followed in 1954: the first Consortium turned into the current protection body, the Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese Consortium.

The Protected Designation of Origin

In 1992 EEC Regulation 2081/1992 on Protected Designations of Origin, PDOs (later completed by EEC Regulation 510/2006) was approved: in 1996, Parmigiano Reggiano was recognised as a European PDO: key steps towards the Community protection of Parmigiano Reggiano, which is one of the most counterfeited and imitated cheeses in the world.