Parmigiano Reggiano, Caseifici Aperti returns: how the PDO territory becomes a tourist destination
The Consortium invests 1.2 million in territorial marketing and is working on guidelines to create certified tourist dairies and an integrated offer with Motor Valley and opera circuits with the goal of increasing from 180,000 annual visitors to 300,000 by 2029
Own resources amounting to 1.2 million euros: this is the investment in territorial marketing allocated by the Parmigiano Reggiano DOP Consortium for 2026 and is part of the 42 million euros earmarked for communication and marketing activities. But this is just the beginning, because the projects in the tourism field are ambitious and have a long horizon. In fact, the figure is set to double as the number of producers involved increases.
"We want to take Parmigiano Reggiano from product to destination," says Cristiano Casa, a tourism expert who joined the consortium in 2025 as destination manager. "In 2025 we had 180 thousand visitors but we want to reach 300 thousand by 2029. For Italia, this is a lot, but it is still not much compared to the more than 12 million annual visitors to the vineyards of the Champagne region'.
Certified and widespread reception
It is not simply a matter of attracting more visitors but above all of positioning the area of origin of Parmigiano Reggiano as arecognisable and desired tourist destination and transforming the visit to the dairy into a brand-building asset as a touchpoint that increases knowledge and reputation of the cheese. With commercial spin-offs too, because the experience in the dairy translates into immediate purchases and builds customer loyalty, who tends to buy the cheese even after returning home through the producers' e-commerce and the consortium's website shop.parmigianoreggiano.com.
The 2026 strategic plan for strengthening the tourist offer is very structured. "We are working on the concept of certified tourist cheese dairy, to create guidelines, train employees and guarantee the quality of the welcome offered to visitors,' explains Casa. 'We want to create a network that is present in all the production areas, from the lowlands near the Po river to the Apennines, where the cheese dairies are real territorial garrisons.
Synergy with opera and motorvalley
At the same time, the Consortium is building a strong territorial presence with a single, coordinated image that, through cards and landmarks, succeeds in making the area of origin of Parmigiano Reggiano immediately recognisable. And it is ready to transform its website into a real tourist portal.
