He can be described, without fear of contradiction, as the standard-bearer of an international record: the representative of the only dry durum wheat semolina pasta with the PGI mark. His tone is calm, his wit always "al dente"—sorry, witty and timely. It's no coincidence that he considers pasta an "elixir of long life." To those who are hesitant, he replies: "Queen of the Mediterranean diet, pasta brings good humor and contributes with flavor to a healthy lifestyle." He dispenses curiosities suspended between history and legend: "Do you know why they're called Maccaroni? The word comes from the Latin ammaccare (to bruise). It's said that Roman soldiers on the march would crush this pasta on their shoulders to dry it in the sun, otherwise it would have spoiled." We're talking about engineer Massimo Menna, president of the Consortium for the Protection of Gragnano PGI Pasta .
The Consortium is made up of 14 companies , which generate over 98 percent of total production, with estimates exceeding €300 million in turnover and 100,000 tons of PGI pasta produced in 2024. The remaining 2 percent of production is ensured by the other 9 Gragnano pasta factories that have not yet joined the Consortium but which are nevertheless entitled to the PGI mark, as they comply with the production specifications authorized by Masaf, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry.
"I'm hoping for 100% participation. We're all competing to achieve a single goal. I hope even those who aren't there understand the benefits of teamwork."
[…]
The Consortium's watchwords are twofold: promotion and protection . To strengthen its presence in markets while simultaneously exploring new ones. The meeting between President Menna and the young Commander of the Castellammare di Stabia Company is no coincidence; it reveals shared intentions, a tacit pact between respectful and trusted partners: to protect excellence.
In this regard, not long ago, the Fiamme Gialle of Castellammare di Stabia seized over 200 kg of pasta from other areas, from a producer no longer a member of the Consortium, while the packaging was improperly labeled with the PGI mark (this story is discussed in more detail in the box below, ed.). A rare case, isolated thanks to the timely intervention of the financial police .
Menna, congratulating the Consortium on its efforts, then listed the measures implemented directly by the Consortium. " There is a complex system of controls . First, an external certification body (CSQA) verifies the pasta factories' full compliance with the production specifications ; a designated supervisory agent monitors the accuracy of the information provided to consumers; we have also adopted software that monitors the marketing of products on websites and e-commerce platforms. To complete the picture, there are numerous public inspections carried out by the competent authorities ."
[…]
Source: The Financier