Auricchio

Auricchio is an Italian cheese-making company and dairy brand headquartered in Cremona. Its origins date to 1877, when Gennaro Auricchio established the business at San Giuseppe Vesuviano, in the province of Naples. The company’s early identity was closely tied to provolone, a stretched-curd cheese whose production depends on controlled fermentation, shaping, and aging. Auricchio’s historical distinction came from a special rennet developed by Gennaro Auricchio, which helped support the production of the company’s characteristic provolone. The business expanded beyond its original local base relatively quickly. During the 1880s, it began exporting cheese to the United States, where its products were sold through Italian-American retail networks, including shops in New York’s Little Italy. International demand contributed to the need for additional production capacity. Before the end of the nineteenth century, Auricchio had added a dairy facility in Cremona, a city that later became the company’s headquarters and an important center for its operations. Over the course of its development, Auricchio broadened its portfolio through the addition of other brands and companies. Although provolone remained its signature product and a central part of its commercial identity, the company expanded into several other categories of Italian dairy production. These include Parmigiano Reggiano, Grana Padano, Pecorino Romano, fresh sheep cheeses, mature sheep cheeses, caciotta, and ricotta. The range combines protected-designation cheeses with other traditional fresh and aged products. Auricchio’s production footprint includes specialized facilities in several Italian regions. The Macomer site in Sardinia produces Pecorino Romano DOP and other sheep cheeses. The Scandiano facility in Emilia-Romagna is associated with caciotta and ricotta, while the Solignano site in Parma specializes in Parmigiano Reggiano. This geographically distributed model reflects the company’s reliance on regional cheesemaking traditions and on the protected or customary identities of different Italian cheese styles. By 2016, Auricchio was reported to produce approximately half of all provolone sold in Italy, illustrating the importance of the brand in its core domestic category. In 2017, Italy’s Ministry of Economic Development issued a 95-cent postage stamp commemorating the company’s 140th anniversary. The anniversary recognition highlighted Auricchio’s long continuity in Italian food manufacturing and its historical association with provolone. Today, the company remains positioned around traditional Italian cheese production, combining a highly recognizable provolone franchise with a broader portfolio of regional dairy specialties.

Auricchio was founded in 1877 at San Giuseppe Vesuviano in the province of Naples by Gennaro Auricchio. The company’s early development was associated with provolone, a traditional Italian stretched-curd cheese. Gennaro Auricchio created a special rennet for provolone production, establishing a technical and product foundation that would remain central to the company’s identity. In the 1880s, Auricchio began exporting cheese to the United States. Its products were distributed through Italian-American retail channels, including stores serving the community in New York’s Little Italy. The emergence of an overseas market increased the company’s production requirements. Before 1900, Auricchio added a dairy in Cremona. Cremona subsequently became the company’s headquarters and an important base for its continuing operations. The company later expanded its business beyond its original provolone specialization. It acquired additional brands and companies and developed a wider range of Italian dairy products. The resulting portfolio included Parmigiano Reggiano, Grana Padano, Pecorino Romano, other fresh and seasoned pecorino cheeses, caciotta, and ricotta. This expansion enabled Auricchio to participate in several major Italian cheese categories while retaining provolone as its best-known product. Auricchio’s modern production network is distributed across locations with strong regional associations. Its Macomer facility in Nuoro produces Pecorino Romano DOP and other fresh and mature sheep cheeses. The Scandiano plant in Reggio Emilia produces caciotta and ricotta. The Solignano site in Parma specializes in Parmigiano Reggiano. These facilities support a portfolio that depends on different milk sources, production methods, maturation periods, and regional traditions. The company’s position in provolone was particularly significant in Italy. In 2016, Auricchio was reported to account for approximately 50 percent of provolone sold in the Italian market. In 2017, the Italian Ministry of Economic Development issued a 95-cent stamp marking the company’s 140th anniversary. The commemoration underscored Auricchio’s longevity and its place in the history of Italian cheese manufacturing. The available reference material describes Auricchio as an active Italian cheese-making company headquartered in Cremona, with a product range extending from its historic provolone base to multiple protected and traditional Italian cheeses.

• 2017

  140th anniversary commemorated on a postage stamp

  [1]Auricchioen.wikipedia.org

  Italy’s Ministry of Economic Development issues a 95-cent stamp honoring Auricchio’s 140th anniversary.

• 2016

  Reported leading position in Italian provolone

  [1]Auricchioen.wikipedia.org

  Auricchio is reported to produce approximately half of the provolone sold in Italy.

• 1899

  Cremona production expands

  [1]Auricchioen.wikipedia.org

  Before 1900, the company adds a dairy in Cremona, which later becomes its headquarters.

• 1880

  Exports to the United States begin

  [1]Auricchioen.wikipedia.org

  During the 1880s, Auricchio begins exporting cheese to the United States, supplying Italian-American retail channels.

• 1877

  Auricchio is founded

  [1]Auricchioen.wikipedia.org

  Gennaro Auricchio establishes the cheese-making company at San Giuseppe Vesuviano in the province of Naples.

A traditional Italian cheesemaker centered on provolone and supported by a broad portfolio of regional fresh, semi-soft, hard, and sheep-milk cheeses.

• Stretched-curd cheese · 1877

  Provolone

  Provolone is Auricchio’s historic and signature product category. The company’s origins are linked to Gennaro Auricchio’s development of a special rennet for provolone production. The range includes mild, sharp, and smoked styles, allowing the brand to cover different flavor profiles and maturation preferences. Provolone has remained central to Auricchio’s identity and was reported to represent approximately half of Italian provolone sales in 2016.

• Hard cow’s-milk cheese

  Parmigiano Reggiano

  Parmigiano Reggiano is part of Auricchio’s expanded portfolio of traditional Italian cheeses. Production is associated with the company’s specialized facility in Solignano, in the province of Parma. The product extends Auricchio beyond provolone into one of Italy’s best-known hard, aged cheeses.

• Hard cow’s-milk cheese

  Grana Padano

  Grana Padano is one of the hard Italian cheeses included in Auricchio’s broader dairy range. Its inclusion reflects the company’s development from a provolone specialist into a producer offering several established Italian cheese traditions.

• Protected-designation sheep’s-milk cheese

  Pecorino Romano DOP

  Pecorino Romano DOP is produced at Auricchio’s Macomer facility in Nuoro, Sardinia. It forms part of the company’s sheep-cheese portfolio and represents its participation in a protected Italian regional cheese category.

• Fresh and matured sheep’s-milk cheeses

  Pecorino cheeses

  Auricchio produces a range of fresh and seasoned pecorino cheeses in addition to Pecorino Romano DOP. The range covers different maturation profiles and demonstrates the company’s move into a wider selection of sheep-milk dairy products.

• Soft or semi-soft cheese

  Caciotta

  Caciotta is a round, generally soft Italian cheese produced at Auricchio’s Scandiano facility in Reggio Emilia. It adds a milder and more accessible cheese style to a portfolio otherwise strongly associated with aged and intensely flavored products.

• Fresh dairy product

  Ricotta

  Ricotta is produced at the Scandiano plant alongside caciotta. As a fresh dairy product, it broadens Auricchio’s range beyond aged cheeses and complements the company’s traditional cheese-making operations.

1. 1Auricchioen.wikipedia.org