A JOURNEY IN SEARCH OF THE LOST TRADITION FOR CHEESE,
BETWEEN HISTORY AND SUSTAINABILITY
Eight cheeses, five regions and the start of a new journey, to discover (or re-discover) the territories, traditions and stories of small-scale producers. This is the new LoST EU programme, a project on the theme of sustainability and the promotion of small cheese designations supported by the European Union, which is pursuing a plan of promotion and events aimed at enhancing the value of some of Italy’s excellent cheeses, which currently represent one of the many riches of the local gastronomic heritage, as well as an example of sustainability.
LoST tells the story of places and products that, while distant from one another, are united by the very close ties they have with their history and their territory, becoming a symbol of an “elsewhere” with respect to a more conventional culture.
The acronym LoST (looking for the sustainability of taste in Europe) means the search for a unique, unrepeatable taste that comprises the values of sustainability. And it wants to suggest the idea of something that seems lost, but also a need for research that many of us feel with regard to traditions that have been lost and stories of a past when the rules were different, dictated by the close relationship with nature.
Protagonists, cheeses of outstanding Italian excellence such as Murazzano, Roccaverano, and Ossolano from the Piedmont region, Puzzone di Moena from Trentino, Strachítunt from Lombardy, Vastedda from the Belice Valley and Pecorino Siciliano from Sicily, and, last but not least, Provolone del Monaco from Campania.
Regions from every corner of Italy, characterised by breathtaking landscapes, which portray the beauty of our country and are also the cradle of these extraordinary cheeses.
The LoST chain involves eight small Protection Consortia, organisations that were created with the intention of safeguarding and promoting these fundamental values. The protagonists of LoST’s journey will be the Consortium for the Protection of Murazzano PDO Cheese, the Consortium for the Protection of Roccaverano PDO Cheese, the Consortium for the Protection of Ossolano PDO Cheese, the Voluntary Consortium for the Protection of Puzzone di Moena PDO Cheese, the Consortium for the Protection of Strachítunt PDO, the Consortium for the Protection of Vastedda della Valle del Belice PDO, the Consortium for the Protection of Pecorino Siciliano PDO and the Consortium for the Protection of Provolone del Monaco PDO. They all share the same production philosophy, respect for animal welfare and attention to the consumer, as well as strong roots in their territory and landscape of origin.
The project’s keyword is sustainability, which is guaranteed thanks to the great work of the Consortia that protect the product thanks to a number of fundamental rules: the appreciation of the heritage of natural resources and local traditions, the promotion and preservation of regional rural landscapes which counteract the depopulation of marginal areas, and the desire to preserve the variety of native breeds, to prevent the loss of the genetic heritage. Support for the local economy is also fundamental. In this sense, the Consortia specifically protect the origin of the products from intensive farming, respecting the life cycle of the pastures, thereby promoting sustainable use of the soil, characteristics that contribute to keeping the economy of the production areas alive.
LoST tells the story of places and products that, while distant from one another, are united by the very close ties they have with their history and their territory, becoming a symbol of an “elsewhere” with respect to a more conventional culture.
The acronym LoST (looking for the sustainability of taste in Europe) means the search for a unique, unrepeatable taste that comprises the values of sustainability. And it wants to suggest the idea of something that seems lost, but also a need for research that many of us feel with regard to traditions that have been lost and stories of a past when the rules were different, dictated by the close relationship with nature.
Protagonists, cheeses of outstanding Italian excellence such as Murazzano, Roccaverano, and Ossolano from the Piedmont region, Puzzone di Moena from Trentino, Strachítunt from Lombardy, Vastedda from the Belice Valley and Pecorino Siciliano from Sicily, and, last but not least, Provolone del Monaco from Campania.
Regions from every corner of Italy, characterised by breathtaking landscapes, which portray the beauty of our country and are also the cradle of these extraordinary cheeses.
The LoST chain involves eight small Protection Consortia, organisations that were created with the intention of safeguarding and promoting these fundamental values. The protagonists of LoST’s journey will be the Consortium for the Protection of Murazzano PDO Cheese, the Consortium for the Protection of Roccaverano PDO Cheese, the Consortium for the Protection of Ossolano PDO Cheese, the Voluntary Consortium for the Protection of Puzzone di Moena PDO Cheese, the Consortium for the Protection of Strachítunt PDO, the Consortium for the Protection of Vastedda della Valle del Belice PDO, the Consortium for the Protection of Pecorino Siciliano PDO and the Consortium for the Protection of Provolone del Monaco PDO. They all share the same production philosophy, respect for animal welfare and attention to the consumer, as well as strong roots in their territory and landscape of origin.
The project’s keyword is sustainability, which is guaranteed thanks to the great work of the Consortia that protect the product thanks to a number of fundamental rules: the appreciation of the heritage of natural resources and local traditions, the promotion and preservation of regional rural landscapes which counteract the depopulation of marginal areas, and the desire to preserve the variety of native breeds, to prevent the loss of the genetic heritage. Support for the local economy is also fundamental. In this sense, the Consortia specifically protect the origin of the products from intensive farming, respecting the life cycle of the pastures, thereby promoting sustainable use of the soil, characteristics that contribute to keeping the economy of the production areas alive.
