The war of Mozzarella di Gioia del Colle PDO, has come to an end. The awaited recognition, after the time set for opposition by third parties has expired, and after the favorable vote of the majority of EU member countries, arrives in these days with the official registration in the European headquarters. It took 9 years of battles for the recognition of the new PDO brand after the appeal to the Tar of the Consortium of Buffalo mozzarella from Campania - and one can understand - the opposition of the Bavarian producers, who appealed to the confusion that the new PDO would generated with similar products considering that they too already produce a cheese that is called mozzarella – and is less understood – and even the truly incomprehensible one of the American business association Colonel's Foods. The Mozzarella di Gioia del Colle thus enriches the rich basket of Italian DOP products that give our country a world record: in fact they are 656 Food products with Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), 780 Products with Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) e 64 Traditional Specialties Guaranteed (TSG).
But let's take a step back. The Apulian request was formalized in August 2017. Only two years later, after winning the battle initiated by the Campania buffalo mozzarella consortium with an appeal to the Tar, the Ministry of Agricultural Policies sent the request to the European Union, which was published on European Official Journal on 21 October 2019.
The battle seemed apparently over. However, the 90-day period had to wait for any appeals by one of the Member States. At that point the Bavarians took over: 3 major dairy consortia, including Bayernland, opposed it.
For the Germans, who own important market shares of mozzarella in Europe, the term mozzarella was generic, already used in 2 other protected designations of origin: the Bufala Campana Dop and the Mozzarella Stg. For this reason it could not be used in another denomination, it would have caused confusion for the consumer.
At that point, the European Commission asked the Apulian consortium for clarifications. Michele Face, scientific referent of the disciplinary process and professor of food science and technology at the University of Bari, underlined how a third brand would not have harmed economic interests given that the generic mozzarella had not been affected by the market with the first two. But the answer was hard to come.
In reality, the two products are different. Precisely because of the origin of the milk, one cow's and the other buffalo. In addition, the qualitative constraints for the production of Apulian mozzarella are evident in the production specification.
In the production of Gioia del Colle it is used fresh whole cow milk, not added with any preservatives, but only through the grafting of native artisan serums. Also, pets must be kept at compulsory grazing for 150 days a year and fed with a specific diet, so as to have a milk rich in vegetable elements, unsaturated fats, vitamins and above all in taste.
Unlike that from Campania, Mozzarella di Gioia del Colle has a more compact and elastic consistency, with a weight that varies from 50 grams per kilo, depending on the shape: braid, knot or the classic sphere. All foreseen by the production disciplinary.
The color ranges from ivory to some straw-coloured veils, which can vary according to the time of year. The skin is very thin, contrary to that of buffalo, because the milk is cow's milk and the salting does not take place according to the Campania tradition (immersed in brine), but before the spinning (carried out in boiling water and subsequently in cold water to obtain firming ).
In addition, it has a slight white whey spillage, an indication of freshness and quality. Even the taste is different: sweet and sour, with notes of fresh milk, butter and field vegetables with a finish of fermented yeasts, more evident in the freshly produced mozzarella.
A product with great versatility in the kitchen. Mozzarella di Gioia del Colle PDO is excellent natural, in a caprese or salad with raw or cooked vegetables. From appetizers to condiments for first courses, cold or hot, or to enrich pizza, Mozzarella di Gioia del Colle lends itself perfectly to any preparation: for more elaborate dishes, but also for a sandwich to be eaten in the park.
The territory of the PDO includes 16 municipalities in the province of Bari, 6 of Taranto, a portion of the Matera area. Approximately 80% of the producers of the territories who will transform 2,06 million quintals of milk per year are members of the Consortium. With 15,8 million kg of mozzarella produced by 22 dairy companies. A completely different story for the Campania Consortium, still weakened by the effects of the pandemic.
A result that the Apulians have been chasing for 10 years: the conquest of the DOP for Mozzarella di Gioia del Colle "is a guarantee of quality, traceability and recognition of the product and also of respect and protection of the consumer", said Giuseppe Genco, councilor of the Gal Terra dei Trulli and Barsento promoting committee.
History.
In an article that appeared years ago in the Corriere del Mezzogiorno, Gianni Spinelli retraced the history of this cheese referring to the research of Rocco Fasano, class of '28, degree in Modern Literature, registered in the register of psychologists, teacher, director of teaching, various publications, man of great culture.
Around 1955, on the outskirts of the town - we read - there were about fifteen shops-dairies, arranged in the basements. The men worked day and night to produce dairy products and sprinkled water and whey on the roads and fields. Obviously, for those arriving in the town, the impact was not pleasant due to acid fumes. But dairy products were already a fortune, arrived by intuition. At the beginning of the twentieth century - writes Rocco Fasano - even a doctor, son of "massari", accustomed to traveling for studies and various interests had moved. On one of his excursions, he "pulled along" two grandchildren. They left by train for the Alps of Switzerland, in search of the right cow.
And they discovered the «brunalpina», a gray cow that produced much more milk than the local cows even with lean pastures. Thus it was that the «brunalpina» and the «frisona» replaced the traditional «podolica» cow, lazy and eater, which was at home in the countryside of the area. It was Clemente Milano who created the first dairy in the town. The “mozzarellari” were born.
Clemente Milano – continues the article – had many followers, all with the aim of putting dairy products on the market ready for daily sale. In the farms, cheeses and caciocavalli continued to be made from the milk of Podolian cows, but mozzarella became the new queen. And some cheese makers became rich, earning the nickname "Signor Mezzomilione". The rest is the history of our days, the fame of the Mozzarella di Gioia del colle crossed not only the Murge, but all of Italy and also the national borders and requests also came from abroad.
