ParmaFood Group
Over 50 years of experience in the food industry have made us grow, nurturing the values of our origins.
ParmaFood Group, born from a family business, whose values and characteristics it maintains, today is the holding company that controls 4 companies active in different businesses in the food sector, carrying on the tradition of production and distribution in the food world.
In ParmaFood Group we produce and market raw and cooked meats, both whole and sliced, as well as fruit extracts, sauces and fresh vegetable dressings as well as mouthwatering gourmet sandwiches. The group also counts the innovative technology of high pressure cold HPP.
We are well aware of the specialties of the Parma Food Valley, we honor and enhance our land rich in food and wine specialties.
We are artisans and innovators at the same time: precise in high-quality manual work, we believe in the value of workmanship, but also in that of technological progress.
We look ahead and innovate, keeping our roots firmly in the depths of our origins.
“We have not inherited the earth from our fathers, we are borrowing it from our children.”
The world of consumption is traveling faster and faster towards true sustainability, digitalisation and people’s well-being.
PHILOSOPHY
A family of innovators
An essential philosophy is the backbone of our work: it is based on the principles of family, honesty and respect. We pursue sustainability meant as a business that views the individual as a primary asset and the environment as a legacy for future generations.
We are heralds and developers of the principles of legality and transparency, and we aim at the best possible quality by continuously innovating the production processes in order to retain more and more the genuineness of foodstuff and more according to the respect of the well-being.
VISION
An innovative food company or a sustainable future
We are a food company capable of looking to the future thanks to products faithful to the taste and quality of nature, developed through the continuous search for innovative production technologies. We wish to be in every home with proposals characterised by a high service component and oriented towards sustainability in order to bequeath a better tomorrow to the new generations.
Our history
We were a small local Emilian firm, we have become a reference point for the food Made in Italy. Our journey is dotted with business challenges and decisions that have always aimed at constant growth and internationalisation. We have pursued a working philosophy based on the union of craftsmanship passion and innovative spirit without ever forgetting the founding values of the Group: quality and responsibility.
Structure and organisation
The Parent Company is based in Lesignano De’ Bagni, in the province of Parma. The owners – three brothers Giancarlo, Giorgio and Giulio Gherri – make up the Board of Directors on an equal basis. We have the controlling interests of three companies: Prosciuttificio San Michele, Parma Is and HPP Italia, all operating in the food industry and related services. In 2020 we also acquired a 15% minority stake in FrescoBreak, an innovative start-up with a direct majority holding of the Gherri brothers.
The Group’s companies
Our values
We believe in a future where food is sustainable, healthy and capable of arousing one-of-a-kind emotions in people.
We focus on innovation without ever forgetting passion and our tradition. We build trust and collaboration to be the protagonists of a better tomorrow. We base our work on concrete values, we apply our principles in a tangible way every day. Innovation, collaboration, know-how, trust, uniqueness and emotions are our pillars.
The pay-off stems from the values and promise of PARMAFOOD GROUP:
INNOVATION THAT THRILLS
CONTINUOUS INNOVATION
We are always looking for new challenges, we never stop at the status quo and we strongly believe in the value of investments in research and development. Innovation is inherent to the soul of ParmaFood, as is craftsmanship.
CO-LAB AS A GREAT RESOURCE
Collaborations do not scare us, on the contrary they stimulate us, we think they are a great wealth in which it is good to invest, sharing aims and strategies to offer customers flexible services that meet their needs.
KNOW-HOW CONNECTED TO THE TERRITORY
Ancient traditions profoundly connected to the territory, this is the soul of ParmaFood. Our history accompanies us in every choice and action: it all began with the passion and desire to do, and still continues to be like this.
TRUST AND TRANSPARENCY
Reliability, seriousness and transparency have been part of our spirit since the birth of Salumificio San Martino in 1964. We believe that these are the values that enable us to grow and look to the future with enthusiasm.
UNIQUENESS MADE IN ITALY
Italianness is synonymous with craftsmanship and originality: our products are unique because they are 100% Made In Italy and connected to the Parma area – the Food Valley of our Country. This genuine quality cannot be imitated!
POSITIVE EMOTIONS
We are a large family with an energetic, positive mindset: this is also reflected in our products in a virtuous way. We want the people who choose us to perceive our enthusiasm and all the passion we put into it.
Innovation: a passion that thrills
Innovating excites us! Always pushing ourselves a little further with careful steps but with the enthusiasm of those who look straight to the future. Our Group has always had an innovative spirit that has led us to invest in research and development on an ongoing basis. And innovating also excites people, customers and consumers: because it enables us to create and maintain a production system focused on quality and their satisfaction.
PRODUCT QUALITY AND INNOVATION
For us, guaranteeing high quality products to our customers is a priority, and we are convinced that continuous research and innovation are the right way to achieve this goal. Over the years we have made major investments to improve the processes and technology of our factories and to ensure safe, fast and effective production from the reception of raw materials to packaging. These investments now also translate into the ability to experiment and make product innovations.
CONSUMERS’ HEALTH AND SAFETY
The protection of the health and safety of consumers is a key element and value for us, which underlies all our activities. For this reason, we comply with all relevant regulations in order to guarantee good, safe products to our customers. This is also the reason why we have activated several voluntary certifications.
HPP: HIGH PRESSURE PROCESSING
In addition to the production of Pagnotto brand sandwiches and the line of aperitifs and snacks, the use of HPP technology has enabled us to offer a new line of raw sauces, fruit extracts, pasta condiments and infusions that are no longer hot pasteurised. Furthermore, the raw materials of the Fresche Idee line retain the rich nutrients naturally present and their vitamin and energy potential.
CONTROLLED, SUSTAINABLE SUPPLY CHAIN
All our products are subjected to periodic tests performed in certified external laboratories and carried out frequently, according to specific criteria for each type of food in order to ensure their quality in all phases, from raw materials to the finished product. The surfaces of all departments are also periodically checked, including those of processing coming in direct, indirect contact or not in contact with food. We also verify the microbiological quality of the process water, both before and after its use, and of the working environment air of the clean rooms.
Territory always in the foreground
The territory of the Food Valley of Parma represents our origins, our history, but also our production: the genuine quality of our food is what makes these areas well-known all over the world. We respect, value and make our territory the protagonist.
CORPORATE VALUE
The creation of corporate value also passes from supporting local growth and all those involved in our supply chain. The value generated by ParmaFood Group is largely redistributed in the area in which we operate through the creation of employment and the use of a high percentage of local suppliers.
RELATIONSHIP WITH THE TERRITORY
The bond with the territory is a hallmark of our way of doing business. Our production area benefits from a considerable prestige, which is also transmitted to our products, helping to guarantee their quality. The values, tradition and know-how inherent to the province of Parma are therefore key elements of our excellent delights.
Sustainable production
Our supply chain is controlled and sustainable in environmental, social and economic terms. In decisions regarding staff, in those relating to energy consumption and waste management, we always look to sustainability and ethics, to really make a difference.
RAW MATERIALS AND MATERIALS USED
The quality of the raw materials, mainly represented by fresh and seasoned meats, has long been one of the hallmarks of our way of doing business. Constant attention, also confirmed by the fact that several of our deli meats, drinks and fruit and vegetable-based preparations have obtained certifications reserved for organic products.
EMISSIONS IN THE ATMOSPHERE
Our emissions are mainly determined by the consumption of natural gas for energy production and by the refills of refrigerant gases necessary for the conservation of products and raw materials. The cogeneration plant installed at Prosciuttificio San Michele has enabled us to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels and consequently to reduce the emissions associated with them. Some of the new premises built at the Via Cavo headquarters are also cooled using glycol, thus avoiding the use of refrigerant gases with a high climate-altering impact. The new Parma Is plants in Traversetolo use only energy from renewable sources. The new Parma Is plant under construction will use CO2 as a refrigerant gas for cooling, thus allowing significant energy savings as well as producing hot water without the need for methane boilers.
WASTE MANAGEMENT
The waste we produce consists mainly of packaging and sludge deriving from the treatment of effluents. Other types may be added sporadically to these, linked to extraordinary activities such as construction sites.
ENERGY CONSUMPTION
In 2019 at Prosciuttificio San Michele we installed a photovoltaic system and one for cogeneration for the production of electricity, which provide us with 60% of the power consumed by the plant. Not only that: the cogeneration plant also enables us to self-produce 30% of the thermal energy we use, in the form of hot water and steam.
WATER RESOURCE
In the San Michele Prosciuttificio plant, the water resource is involved in the entire production process. The water is drawn from a well and, after using it, goes through a passage in tanks intended for the surfacing of fats: only then is it discharged into the public sewer. The impact on the water resource is assessed in terms of the quantity withdrawn, which is directly proportional to that of processed meat.