place of origin highlights the close connection existing between a product of gastronomic excellence and the territory in which it is made, such that, on the one hand, any attempt at extra ordinem production (that is to say, in a non-legal meaning, outside the boundaries) is not feasible and, on the other hand, the connection between a defined space and the products made therein is, indeed, indissoluble. II. THE REGULATORY FRAMEWORK IN THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TERRITORY AND GASTRONOMIC PRODUCT In order to explore the proposition that territory is an essential element of food production, the present analysis takes as its reference point the specific case of the Italian provinces of Emilia-Romagna (Parma, Reggio Emilia, and Modena) and Lombardy (Mantua), where Parmigiano Reggiano is produced. This is a product of excellence, recognised as the result of a regulated production process in which territoriality itself constitutes an essential element3. Its peculiar features are better understood in a historical backdrop. The origins of Parmigiano Reggiano date back to the Middle Ages, when, thanks to the industriousness of the Cistercian and Benedictine monks present in the Emilia area, a long-lasting cheese was developed using salt from the saltworks of what is now Salsomaggiore Terme4. During the Middle Ages—especially in the twelfth century—there were agricultural holdings connected to monasteries, known as grancie5, where, according to historical reconstructions, the production of caseus suitable for long preservation and transport began6. 3 On food products and their connection with territoriality, see F. ALBISINNI, Strumentario di diritto alimentare europeo, Torino, UTET, 2023, and in particular, p. 332 ff. 4 A municipality in the Province of Parma renowned for the presence of salsobromoiodic water springs. 5 To explore the topic further, refer to A. Pradi, Grancia, in Enc. It. (voce), Giuffrè, 1933. 6 The existence of Parmigiano cheese is certainly attested in the fourteenth century. In the Decameron, Third Tale of the Fifth Day, Giovanni Boccaccio writes: “In una contrada, che si chiamava, Bengodi, nella quale si legano le vigne con le salsicce, e avevasi un’oca a denaio e un papero giunta, ed eravi una montagna tutta di formaggio parmigiano grattugiato, sopra alla quale stavan genti che niuna altra cosa facevano, che fare maccheroni e raviuoli, e cuocergli in brodo di capponi, e poi li gettavan quindi giù, e chi più ne pigliava, più se n’haveva””, ed. UTET, edited by V. Branca, 1954, p. 624. Its existence, moreover, is documented as early as the thirteenth century. Indeed, there is a notarial deed drafted in Genoa in 1254, in which the caseus parmensis is mentioned, thereby proving not only the existence of the cheese but also its recognition beyond the territories of Emilia, as evidence of the product’s commercialisation; see the Consorzio website, section “Product”, “Story”, at www.parmigianoreggiano.it. 409 TERRITORY AND GASTRONOMIC PRODUCTS OF EXCELLENCE: AN INDISSOLUBLE UNION
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