Our history

Spinning the wheel of taste

since 1939

At Battistero, we have been producing high-quality Parmigiano Reggiano made exclusively with milk from Val Ceno and Val Pessola since 1939. Caseificio Sociale il Battistero is just a few metres away from the ancient Baptistery of Serravalle, after which it is named.
Beside Parmigiano we also produce fresh, ripened and stretched-curd cheeses, desserts and other delicacies.
We sell directly to the public in our store in Serravalle and at farmers’ markets, since we really like to meet our customers in person.
We supply restaurants, stores and agritourism farms and sell our products online, so we can reach anyone who wants to enjoy the quality of mountain cheeses.
We organise guided tours, workshops and tastings to make everyone know about all the knowledge and taste contained in each wheel of cheese.

Shreds of history

1939

BY MULE

It’s 1939: 114 farmers from Val Ceno and Val Pessola form a cooperative to produce Parmigiano Reggiano. The Consortium for the protection of Parmigiano was founded just 5 years before, in 1934. The cooperative is named “Caseificio Serravalle Ceno”. It produces only 3 wheels per day, and only in the summer months, since milk is brought to Serravalle by mule, and the paths are blocked during the winter.

1939

1960

PARMIGIANO ALL YEAR AROUND

New roads and bridges connect our valleys. Finally, we can work all year round. We take the opportunity to start producing “Vernengo”: winter Parmigiano Reggiano made with milk from cows fed exclusively on dry hay. Light coloured, yet tasty and rich in fat.

1960

1970

INDUSTRIALISATION IN OUR OWN WAY

With a little delay, the economic boom reaches our mountains. Many farmers decide to change profession and become factory workers, but those who keep their old activity face a time of great changes too: from subsidence agriculture to market economy. The number of the members of the cooperative decreases to 40; nevertheless, we manage to increase the production thanks to the introduction of new equipment.

1970

1980

MORE ROOM FOR TASTE

After 40 years of activity, the dairy factory need its first repairs. We buy the premises that we used to rent from the Diocese and we begin to work to expand and adjust them to the new regulations.

1980

2000

REAL AND VIRTUAL

With the new millennium, we renew our dairy on both fronts: we build a new warehouse and launch our website, as an additional showcase to make people everywhere know about our products.

2000

2010

LOCAL AND GLOBAL

The 2010s are a period of success: 2015 is a golden year for us. We open our new shop, which includes a café and a hall for tastings; we receive a certificate of public merit from the Municipality of Varano de’ Melegari and a we win a medal at the World Cheese Awards in Birmingham. In 2017, we start our online sales; in 2018, our products travel to the Arctic circle with the ship of the Polar Quest scientific expedition.