Montasio DOP, confirmed by CSQA as certifying body of the 6,500 tons produced

Protection consortium: "quality also passes through control"
The body is authorized to carry out checks on a certified supply chain resulting from the work of over 40 producers, 14 seasoners and 795 livestock farms

CSQA reconfirmed as certification body for the Consortium for the protection of Montasio DOP cheese. The authorization has been renewed by the Central Inspectorate for the Protection of Quality and the Repression of Frauds (ICQRF), of agri-food products of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty (Masaf).

Montasio DOP, a typical Friulian semi-hard cooked cheese that takes its name from the homonymous plateau located in the peaks of the Julian Alps, represents the eighth supply chain in the certified Italian cheese sector, with a production of around 800,000 forms of DOP product year that generate a consumer value of 65 million euros , the result of the work of over 40 producers, 14 seasoners and 795 zootechnical farms in the area. In recent years, the export figure has grown, reaching almost 7% of production for a value of over 4 million euros (Data from the Consortium for the Protection of Montasio Cheese).

An excellence that represents the only DOP in the dairy sector of Friuli-Venezia Giulia and contributes substantially to the regional basket of certified "food" products which counts 7 food Geographical Indications for a production value of 359 million euros ( Ismea-Qualivita 2022 Report data).

Since 1984, the Consortium for the Protection of Montasio Cheese has been in charge of the defense and protection of the production, engaged in the promotion, enhancement and protection of the quality of the product, monitoring and verifying that the production always complies with the DOP Regulations. Various activities put in place by the Consortium focused on enhancing the brand, on the quality, authenticity and uniqueness of Montasio through targeted campaigns, both towards the GDO of northern Italy and Austria. Among the actions also the dissemination of science, a research activity for the strengthening of typicality in collaboration with the University of Udine and the enhancement of the "Quality Gold" seal, the "superior" quality mark branded on the shapes , after the experts of the Consortium certify its "perfection" after 100 days of slow and controlled maturing.

In this sense, the choice of CSQA for controls in the name of certified quality is confirmed, as the maximum guarantee to the consumer of the values expressed by the territory of origin and the nutritional values of the DOP product. “ Continuing with the inspections by CSQA, the leading certification body in Italy in the field of Geographical Indications, allows us to keep the control bar high” – underlines Valentino Pivetta , President of the Consortium for the protection of Montasio DOP. The quality of a product cannot be separated from a constant control activity and it is thanks to the careful, punctual and in-depth tests that our cheese boasts high standards of quality and authenticity, always aimed at protecting consumers".

“ Our confirmation as control body of the Montasio DOP” – says Pietro Bonato , Director General and CEO of CSQA – “ is the result of the work carried out on the front of the guarantee of this hard and cooked cheese, produced exclusively with cow's milk; an excellence with a long history dating back to the 1700s, when the monks of the Moggio Udinese Abbey refined the production technique. Montasio is the expression of its land of origin, a product with a deep taste that combines goodness with the virtues of authenticity, naturalness and sustainability. We are happy to continue on the path taken and of the renewed trust in our company in terms of enhancing products with designation of origin ".

Montasio DOP confirms the value of the DOP IGP product portfolio certified by CSQA, which currently includes 74 Geographical Indications: a figure that underlines the desire to increasingly accompany the sustainable development of quality agri-food supply chains, a symbol of Made in Italy and vocation of territories .