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JUN. JUL. 2017
IV
With which brands does New
Vecagel collaborate?
Thanks to the trust built up over
time, New Vecagel can boast
collaboration with major brands
of the Italian industrial sector
including: Barilla, Cirio, De Cecco,
Carapelli, Knorr, Orogel, Valfrutta,
Veroni, Scotti, Pizzoli, Ponti and
Mulino Bianco. Among our partners,
however, there are also no lack
of international players such as
Delifrance, Develey, Lutosa, Lamb
Weston and MC Cain.
On the other hand, who are your
main clients?
We mainly address players in
the sector: restaurants,
pizzerias, hotels, cafeterias, public
and private bodies.
And what are the most requested
product categories?
As mentioned, we have recorded a
boom of gluten-free products in the
last few months. In a land like Sicily
with a strong fishing background,
the demand for prawns, octopus
and squid remains important and
constant. In addition, canned goods
are included - I think in particular
the red sauces - and sausages.
Let’s talk about assurance. What
procedures have been taken
to ensure the freshness and
genuineness of the products?
We entrust ourselves to a fleet of
latest-generation vehicles, which
ensure controlled temperature
transportation, a factor of
fundamental importance for the
correct preservation of the products.
Looking to the future, what is the
strong point which will give New
Vecagel more leverage?
Its staff. I am convinced that
a company can only grow if
its components are good and
trustworthy. And this is the case in
New Vecagel, which can count on
staff which demonstrate commitment
and dedication.
Finally, are there new projects in
the pipeline?
The entrepreneurial spirit that
supported me in the management
of New Vecagel, led me to decide to
broaden the field of activity. Thus,
in June I will open a restaurant
on the coast, the name of which is
“Locanda Mare da Nitto”, French
inspired, where there is also a bar
kiosk reserved for seafood. But the
dream always remains to be able to
expand the structure and increase
the workforce of New Vecagel.
AT PAGE 12
Qi Partners
BetweenTuscany and
Liguria: Beauty to
discover, taste
and live...
Everything concentrated in a handful
of kilometres that unravel between
the sea and inland, saturated areas
of cultural and gastronomic richness.
It’s here that GF1 works, excellence
in food distribution.
By Maddalena Baldini
Looking at it from above and
connecting the most important towns
with a pencil line, the territory is
similar to the shape of a sliver of the
moon. A slice of land that connects
two regions that fit each other. We
are straddling the furthest part
of Tuscany and the beginning of
Liguria, precisely at Avenza located
between Massa and Carrara (MS) and
Levanto (SP). Around 60 kilometres
separate these areas, to a territory
that embraces a high economic and
tourist potential, made up of culture,
traditions and food and wine.
The journey starts from Tuscany,
from Avenza to be precise, in the
province of Massa Carrara, whose
name, among the most accredited
assumptions, seems to derive from
Laventia, a term that, in the old days,
indicated a place connected to a river,
now recognized as the Carrione, the
waterway that runs through the town.
Located a few kilometers from the
sea, on the border between Marina di
Massa and Marina di Carrara, behind
the town of Carrara, and following
an economic and urban development
that took place in the 1970s, today
it represents a fundamental bridge
between the seaside business, which
applies to the whole area of Versilia,
and the famous Carrara marble
quarry industry, whose excellence is
known all over the world.
It’s not only an important commercial
area but a sector now consolidated
also from the point of view of tourism
because, around the mining activity
in the Apuan Alps, routes have been
developed for visitors, especially
exploiting the old marble pathways
that cross the depths of the quarries.
In addition, the entire industry is also
active from an educational point of
view, for example with the Campus di
Arte e Scultura Michelangelo Carrara
, which sees
among its cornerstones the professor
and sculptor Max Tedeschi: “Also for
2017 we have 18 students who arrive
from all parts of the world; a great
satisfaction and a clear indication
of the international fame of Carrara
marble.” Not to mention the many
culinary specialities of the province
that revolve around a tradition that
intertwines the cuisine of the sea to
that of the land, like the “Tordello”,
the rice cake from Massa, the stuffed
mussels and the cod fritters.
BETWEEN ARCHAEOLOGY
AND FLAVOURS
Just a few kilometers by car, you
pass the “border” and you’re already
in Liguria, in the province of La
Spezia. Even here, between sea,
culture and gastronomy there is
an embarrassment of choice. Just
mention the pesto, the basil-based
sauce and extra virgin olive oil that
is becoming an international symbol.
As a matter of fact, something similar
to the preparation which we know
today, was already mentioned by
Publius Vergilius Maro (Virgil):
the Moretum, a sauce made from
cheese and herbs that the Romans
spread on bread and focaccia. It’s no
coincidence that the traditional recipe
sees the basic ingredients include
cheese (Parmesan or Pecorino).
Still remaining in the province of La
MAGAZINE