Granarolo (company)

1957: “The Granarolo” is launched

In 1957 the Bologna Consortium of Milk Producers (CBPL) was founded in Bologna, with the aim of producing, processing and marketing milk, and it took the name "Granarolo" as its trademark for marketing its milk.

1970s: CERPL, the first Italian unitary consortium

In 1972 the Cooperativa Felsinea Latte joined the consortium, giving rise to the Consorzio Emiliano-Romagnolo Produttori Latte (CERPL) which was immediately joined by the Cooperativa Latte Estense of Ferrara, the Cooperativa Produttori Latte of Forlì, the Cooperativa of Ravenna and the Cooperativa of Rimini. Subsequently, the CERPL consortium acquired the Bolognaise ice cream manufacturer, Sanbon.

1980s: Granarolo grows

During the nineteen eighties, the Cooperativa Latte Estense of Ferrara and the Cooperativa Produttori Latte of Forlì left the consortium while at the same time CERPL was joined by the Consorzio Granterre of Modena and the Consortium acquired Daunia Natura of Foggia, Sogecla of Anzio, and the Cooperativa Latte Verbano of Novara (the latter went bankrupt in 1992).

1990s: the Granlatte Consortium and Granarolo S.p.A.

Under the guidance of Luciano Sita, who was appointed President in 1991, in 1992 the Group launched the Granarolo Felsinea S.p.A. Company and acquired Dilat S.p.A. in Soliera. Acquisitions during the nineteen nineties involved the following companies: Latte San Giorgio of Locate di Triulzi (MI) in 1994, Interpack S.r.l. of Gualtieri (Reggio Emilia), Fiore S.r.l. of Udine, Sail S.p.A. of Bari (operating in Puglia under the 'Perla' brand) and Latte Cerulli of Teramo. In 1998 the consortium that controlled the Granarolo Felsinea S.p.A. took the name Granlatte and the next year, Granarolo Felsinea changed its name to Granarolo S.p.A..

2000-2010: the acquisition campaign continues

In 2000 Granarolo completed further acquisitions: Centrale del Latte di Milano, Vogliazzi Specialità Gastronomiche of Vercelli, Centrale del Latte di Viterbo "Alto Lazio", half the capital in Centrale del Latte di Calabria S.p.A. and Latte Bianchi in Mogliano Veneto (Treviso). Also, in 2004 it acquired the Yomo Group to save it from bankruptcy, and with it came the Yomo, Torre in Pietra (excluding milk), Mandriot, Pettinicchio and Merlo brands, and the factories in Pasturago (Yomo), Sermoneta (Pettinicchio) and Acqui Terme (Merlo). The ex Yomo Group also included the CSL - Centro Sperimentale del Latte [Milk Experimentation Centre], tasked with producing probiotics for alimentary and pharmaceutical use (sold to the Sacco Group in 2013). During 2006 the "historical" Centrale del Latte factory in Milan closed, because it was not included in the acquisition. Its production was transferred to what was previously the Yomo plant in Pasturago. In 2008 the Group was reorganised, which lead to the closure of the subsidiary Agriok S.p.A. (which operated in the chain traceability sector), and the gastronomic branch of the Company (Vogliazzi) was sold off, as was the Sermoneta cheese factory (whereas the Pettinicchio brand was retained), and the plant in Acqui Terme (selling the Merlo brand). In 2010 the Group set up Zeroquattro S.r.l., an integrated logistics services Company with a specific, albeit not exclusive, vocation for transporting and distributing fresh food products, via a refrigerated chain at 0 °C to 4 °C. On the social commitment front, Granarolo was one of the promoters, along with CEFA Onlus, of the Africa Milk Project, an international self-development cooperation project, set up to create a milk sector in Njombe, one of the poorest parts of Tanzania.

2011-2014: from internationalisation to the first billion

In 2011 Granarolo unveiled its strategic internationalisation plan, based on four main pillars: dimensional growth, and diversification of products, markets, and countries. In line with this foreign development, Granarolo Iberica S.L. was set up for distributing food products in Spain, and the Italian Lat Bri cheese factories were acquired, the third largest fresh cheeses manufacturer in Italy, as well as Ferruccio Podda, a Sardinian Company with a 60-year history, which marked the addition of aged cheeses to the Group's range. Granarolo International S.r.l. was set up and its first operation was in France with the acquisition of the French cheese group, CIPF Codipal (now Granarolo France S.A.S.) that produces and distributes fresh and aged cheeses under the Casa Azzurra, Les Fromagers de Ste Colombe and Les Fromagers de St Omer brands, with two productive facilities. Subsequent operations abroad saw the opening of Granarolo UK, a cheese exporting company in the United Kingdom and Ireland, as well as of the first commercial branch in Shanghai, China. A partnership was also formed with the Vivartia Group, which includes the largest Greek manufacturer of dairy and cheese products, Delta Foods S.A., and that distributes Greek yoghurt and cheeses in Italy. Meanwhile, in Italy a partnership was sealed with Amalattea S.p.A., which manufactures and markets goat's cheese and derivatives, the Pinzani cheese factory in Tuscany was acquired, which specialises in making pecorino “a latte crudo” (made from raw milk), and the Centrale del Gusto S.r.l. was inaugurated, a confectioners, ice cream parlour and coffee shop in Bologna, in collaboration with Gino Fabbri, President of the Accademia Maestri Pasticceri Italiani [Academy of Italian Master Confectioners]. CSR's activities gave rise to Allattami, a Bank for Donated Mothers' Milk in Bologna. This project collects mothers' milk in collaboration with the Sant'Orsola Polyclinic of Bologna. The 2014 financial year closed with turnover of more than a billion Euro.

2015–present: Expo and new acquisitions

At Expo Milano 2015, Granarolo represented the Italian milk sector as a partner of the Italian Pavilion. It recorded more than 510,000 visitors from more than 30 countries, and Africa Milk Project was chosen as the best of 800 projects worldwide, for Best Practice in the "Sustainable development of small rural communities in marginal areas" category. Various acquisition operations are part of the product diversification strategy, aimed at enhancing the Group's presence on international markets: Gennari S.p.A., a company in Parma that specialises in making Parmigiano Reggiano and Prosciutto di Parma, the long-standing Pastificio Granarolo, that makes and markets egg and semolina pasta, and CONBIO, an important Italian company that specialises in making vegetable and organic gastronomic products. Abroad, via the subsidiary, Granarolo International S.r.l., Granarolo Chile was set up, and Bioleche Lacteos was acquired, a long-standing Chilean cooperative of 300 dairy farmers, with a productive facility, and numerous other acquisitions were concluded: European Foods Ltd, the leading importer and distributor of Made in Italy products in New Zealand, Yema Distribuidora de Alimentos Ltda, a company that specialises in producing and marketing cheese products in Brazil, with two productive facilities, and Vinaio OÜ, renamed Granarolo Baltics OÜ, a company that operates in the cheese and dairy products marketing sector and in importing quality Italian products into Estonia. Then there was, Matric Italgross AB, a leading Swedish company that distributes Italian brands, and Comarsa SA, a Made in Italy Food distribution company in Switzerland.

Company structure

The Granarolo Group is made up of: Granlatte Consortium, the cooperative company, that is a member of Legacoop and Confcooperative, the Granarolo Group's Holding Company. The Cooperative's structure is made up of 640 individual producer members, and 12 collection cooperatives in Emilia-Romagna, Piedmont, Lombardy, Veneto, Marche, Puglia, Lazio, Campania, Basilicata, Friuli, Tuscany, Sardinia, Molise and Calabria that unites more than 500 individual milk producers, 27 collection cooperatives in 14 Italian regions, and more than 200 funding members, which is also the Holding Company for the Granarolo Group. Granarolo S.p.A. (77,48% controlled by Granlatte, 19,78% by Intesa Sanpaolo and the remaining 2,74% by Cooperlat) that processes and markets the products and has 14 productive facilities. It also controls a number of companies, the main ones being:

Factories

The Group operates via 20 productive facilities: 14 located throughout Italy, 2 in France, 2 in Brazil, 1 in Chile and 1 in New Zealand.[1] Factories in Italy

Bologna

Pasturago di Vernate (MI)

Usmate Velate (MB)

Soliera (MO)

Gioia del Colle (BA)

Castrovillari (CS)

Anzio (RM)

Sestu (CA)

Villagrande Strisaili (OG)

Montemiccioli (PI)

Parma

Bologna

Sant'Arcangelo di Romagna (RN)

Factories in France

Campagne-lès-Wardrecques (FR)

Saint-Genix-sur-Guiers (FR)

Factory in Chile

Los Angeles (CL)