Pecorino Romano, increased production (+12.4%) and price per kilo (+16%)

In the 2022-2023 marketing year, Pecorino Romano production stood at 366 thousand quintals, an increase of 12.4% compared to the previous year, and the average annual sales value was 13.48 euro per kilo, an increase of more than 16% compared to 2022. These are positive results that are allowing a rejuvenation of a supply chain that in Sardinia (from which comes the vast majority of milk for the making of this PDO cheese that is increasingly loved abroad) produces a turnover of 500 million euro (but the added value estimated by Ismea last December was over 800 million).

The Members' Assembly of the Consortium for the Protection of Pecorino Romano DOP, meeting in Oristano, gave the go-ahead for the 2023 annual budget. The assembly was attended by the regional councillor for Agriculture Gianfranco Satta, Professor Giuseppe Pulina, lecturer at the University of Sassari, and Chiara Volpato of Nomisma, with a focus on the technical characteristics of the product and the evolution of the markets and new consumption trends.

"We have achieved extraordinary results thanks to the commitment of all the members who work daily to make the product grow, improve it and make it attractive on ever-changing markets," said the president of the Protection Consortium, Gianni Maoddi. "The numbers we are currently registering, after the peaks reached in 2023, mark a result of great stability, which is fundamental for development on the markets because it provides the real value of the product. By maintaining these conditions, we can also look forward to the future'.

Pecorino Romano also confirmed itsstrong propensity to export during the 2022-23 season, with 70% of production destined for international markets. In particular, 40% of the exported product goes to the United States market, which is solidly in the lead. 18% goes to the European Union market, 3% to Canada, 2% to Japan and the remaining 7% is distributed among the various non-European foreign markets.