Fratelli Sicilia: from their uncle’s bakery to international markets – the pumpkin panettone makes its debut
Salvo and Piero Motta founded the company in 2016 in Belpasso, at the foot of Mount Etna. Today, it has eighty employees and a turnover of 6.5 million, 65 per cent of which is generated abroad. With Pumpkin Spice, Sicilian ingredients meet the flavours of the North American autumn
Key points
It all began with their uncle’s bakery in Paternò, in the province of Catania. It was there that brothers Salvo and Piero Motta learnt the trade and nurtured the idea of setting up a business of their own. This project became a reality in 2016 with the launch of Fratelli Sicilia, which today, from its headquarters in Belpasso, at the foot of Mount Etna, brings Sicilian pastries to international markets.
Eighty employees, a turnover of 6.5 million euros in 2025 and 65 per cent of revenue generated abroad are the figures released by the company.
Their latest creation is a pumpkin panettone: it’s called Pumpkin Spice and combines the tradition of classic Italian leavened cakes with the flavours of the North American autumn, using Sicilian ingredients.
From a family workshop to business growth
The trade they learnt in a patisserie marks the starting point of a story in which the two brothers have taken on different roles. Salvo, after working his way up in the patisserie and gaining experience in the family’s construction business, now handles the administrative side. Piero, a master baker specialising in leavened products, oversees production. One looks after the accounts and organisation, the other the dough and the production process: they have built their business on this division of responsibilities.
Ten years after its foundation, the catalogue now features over ninety products. Alongside panettone and other large leavened cakes, the range includes traditional pastries, creams and biscuits. According to company figures, turnover in 2025 grew by 35 per cent, reaching 6.5 million euros. The business is driven primarily by overseas markets, which account for almost two-thirds of revenue.
This growth raised a question: how to increase production whilst preserving the characteristics on which the business was founded. The Motta family summarise their answer in the phrase ‘artisan craftsmanship and industrial vision’. The ingredients and processes retain the essence of artisan pastry-making, whilst technology underpins production organisation, safety checks, traceability and the consistency of quality standards.
“Fratelli Sicilia is a modern company because it manages to maintain the very highest standards of quality through the excellence of its raw materials and artisanal production processes, whilst using technology to support a larger scale of production,” explain the brothers.
