Mozzarella di Bufala PDO: lorries being blocked are halting production. And stocks of unused milk are rising

“The atmosphere is positive,” adds Saccani, “we are all facing the same problems and seeking joint solutions. For the first time, we have all agreed that the future of the supply chain is linked to the positioning and quality of Campania PDO mozzarella.” On the agenda is the excessive build-up of stored milk: 31 million kg worth approximately 50 million, which is placing a heavy financial burden on dairies. Efforts are now being made to find a solution for utilising these stocks. According to the specific provisions of the product specification, once 60 hours have passed since milking, this milk cannot be used to produce PDO mozzarella and is therefore ‘downgraded’. It may, however, be suitable (even, for example, after being deep-frozen) for producing non-PDO products, burrata di bufala and other items.

“One avenue to pursue,” Saccani explains, “is the regulation of buffalo calving, encouraging births to take place during the warmer months, with the aim of achieving peak milk production between spring and summer, so that it coincides with the time of year when demand for mozzarella rises”. This is an issue the protection consortium has been campaigning for for some time. “This process has now begun,” Saccani notes, “but farmers point out that it will take some time to complete.”

It is clear, therefore, that birth control alone may not be sufficient to resolve the problem. Consequently, the Protection Consortium is calling for the establishment and convening of a national round table comprising representatives of farmers, dairies and institutions from the four regions – Campania, Puglia, Molise and southern Lazio – where PDO buffalo mozzarella can be produced. ‘Following the model,’ recalls Saccani, who has personally been involved in this matter in the past, ‘of what has been done in the Grana Padano production chain. Optimising the relationship between farmers and dairies would, in fact, benefit the entire supply chain’.

The talk is therefore of optimisation and, reading between the lines, other measures would be desirable: a controlled reduction in milk production, or even a reduction in herd size. At the same time, efforts must be made to capitalise on the current growth in demand for PDO mozzarella, with domestic and foreign consumption on the rise, partly thanks to intensive and targeted promotional campaigns. “But agreements and regulations are needed,” concludes the director-general, “to make the value chain more efficient.”