OUR HISTORY

The Pecorino Romano market was mainly in the United States. At the end of the 1920s, Francesco went to America to look for contacts and try to create a direct sales channel for the cheese they matured in their warehouse. After months, in 1928, Francesco returned: the attempt was only partially successful. They discovered just later, in 1929, that it was the fault of the Great Depression.

After the Great Depression, in the mid-1930s, the Fratelli Pinna restarted with new initiatives. Giommaria and Francesco began an equal collaboration with the Roman company of the “Fratelli Castelli” to manage a network of dairies in Sardinia and sell the product in the various markets. It was an agreement that would have strengthened the Pinna brothers' company, both on an organizational and commercial level.

The Fratelli Pinna began to gain a certain independence from the Fratelli Castelli and found a good support in New York in “The Ambriola Company”, a large importer of Italian cheeses. But in 1940 Italy entered the war, first against France and England, then also against the United States. Any possibility of transatlantic exports was interrupted. Giommaria and Francesco were forced to review their projects.

After the war, cheese exports to the USA were authorized again. It was the period of rebirth. The company became Fratelli Pinna & Figli and grew. Giommaria and Francesco were joined by Serafino and Battistino (Giommaria’s sons), Serafino and Antonino (Francesco’s sons). The idea was to remain a family company, but to create a "cheese factory": a real dairy industry.

With the founders’ sons, a time of great changes began. In 1957, at the gates of Thiesi, in the area called S’Ilvaletzi on the road leading to Bessude, a new avant-garde dairy factory was built and started to operate. Fratelli Pinna & Figli became a company with the name Fratelli Pinna Industria Casearia.

The 1960s were a time of great development for dairy production. Sardinia became the seat of modern and innovative companies. The time was right to overcome Pecorino Romano as the only product. We began to think of “soft table” sheep cheeses, which were very successful in France. Fratelli Pinna expanded the factory and started producing new types of cheese.

In 1974 the dependence on Pecorino Romano was definitively overcome. The Pinna family began to collaborate with the Revelli brothers, who brought their products throughout Italy and above all to a new reality: the Esselunga supermarkets. The Brigante was born, a sweet cheese, which had a great success in northern Italy. Initially it was sold as Crema di Thiesi, but it was with the new lucky name that it would have become famous.

The third generation entered the company, and Fratelli Pinna Industria Casearia became a joint stock company. The first real emporiums of large-scale distribution were born. The relationship between producer and consumer changed. Now food companies had to be recognizable, they had to sign their products with their brand. It was necessary to preserve the quality and flavours of tradition for a much wider market.

In 1985, with an investment of about 14 billion lire, Fratelli Pinna expanded and renovated the S’Ilvaletzi factory. New systems and new technologies helped to achieve even better and constant quality. Now the factory could process over 90 thousand litres of milk a day and, in addition to Pecorino Romano, produced a line of soft and fresh cheeses among which Brigante stood out.

Flocks give milk only for a few months a year: it is one of the biggest difficulties for those who produce sheep cheeses. So, in 2000, Fratelli Pinna opened the ultra-modern freezing system, which could store six million litres of milk. Thanks to this innovative system, at that time it was the only sheep dairy company that could process milk all year round.

Cento anni dopo la nascita dell’azienda, inizia ad entrare la quarta generazione per continuare a guardare al futuro e portare avanti l’idea di Giommaria e Francesco.