The Cellino Group and more than 300 Sardinian farmers continue their mission of “more Sardinian durum wheat”. Thanks to the union between regional tradition and technological progress, the first and only certified Sardinian wheat supply chain aims to increase the production of durum wheat on the island (loved since the times of the ancient Romans). The Sardinian cereal sector is thus brought to a new level.
Filiera Ercole Punto Zero was born in 2018 and is so called to honor the mission that guided its founder (Ercole Cellino). It boasts the UNI ISO 22005 certification, thanks to which it is possible to trace every step of the supply chain: from the selection of the seed to its transformation, production, packaging, and finally distribution. All this allows us to offer a high-quality product, to enhance its origin and guarantee greater safety to customers.
At the dawn of the sixth harvest, it is estimated that this year too, the growth trend highlighted since the early years of the project will be maintained. Before the arrival of the Ercole Punto Zero supply chain, Sardinian durum wheat was able to cover only 7% of the production needs of the Molino Simec di F.lli Cellino. After only five years, a growth of 160% in harvested durum wheat has been recorded. This increase has allowed us to cover up to 20% of the production needs of the Molino.
For the 2024 campaign, given the increase in quintals of seeds and hectares sown (+ 10%) it is estimated that between 300.000 and 350.000 quintals will be collected, which will reconfirm the growth trend of the F.lli Cellino supply chain project.
The aim of increasing these percentages, harvest after harvest, constitutes a single and great goal: to promote the cereal sector of the island, as well as to support the regional economy and protect farmers; leading Sardinia to become an international excellence in the production of durum wheat.
In support of farmers and the regional economy
One of the objectives of the Supply Chain is undoubtedly the support of the regional economy. The Mill is committed to purchasing the supply chain wheat produced by farmers, guaranteeing them a minimum price and rewards for objectives. In recent years the durum wheat market (like many raw material markets) has undergone fluctuations and has been the object of unpredictability, imposing uncertainty and little possibility of making long-term plans on all its operators. The commitment of the Cellino Group is realized with a support policy by setting a purchase price for supply chain wheat above the market average.
To protect the farmers of the supply chain, F.lli Cellino has thus decided to establish a commission made up of eight farmers, each representing a cultivation area between Marmilla, Trexenta and Campidano.
Together Cellino Group
The history of the Cellino Group began in 1955 in Marmilla, the ancient granary of Italy; more precisely in Sanluri, land of wheat and bread. The Cellino family has carried on the cereal and milling tradition of Sardinia for three generations and today controls the entire production chain: from the grain to the table.
In addition to the Simec mill, the Group manages the Pastificio F.lli Cellino, the Fette di Sole biscuit factory and the Stipar feed factory. In 2014, it completed the supply chain with the entry of Sardegna Più, a distribution center that now controls the COOP brand (CCNO). The Group's main mission is to safeguard the production of Sardinian durum wheat, which is why it created the first 100% Sardinian certified supply chain: the Ercole Punto Zero supply chain.
A pact born from a handshake between the Simec mill of F.lli Cellino and about 300 Sardinian farmers. In this ancient land the family acquired the ancient knowledge of the cereal world, giving life to the Alma Method, from the Latin “soul”, because thanks to the double diamond stone decortication it reaches the soul of the grain of wheat, the purest part. And it is precisely by putting all their soul into it that today the Group exports flour, pasta and rusks to 54 countries in the world.
The actors of the supply chain
To realize this project, in collaboration with Società Produttori Sementi and Agris Sardegna, which respectively deal with the production and scientific research of the seeds at the base of the project, the Molino seed factory has carried out studies and tests on the varieties of wheat in the different experimental fields. Thus selecting the cultivars of durum wheat that show excellent yield and resistance to fungal diseases, guarantee quality in milling and a high protein content, as well as perfect adaptability to the environmental and climatic conditions of the land of the Sardinian farmers who share the same mission with the Cellino Group: to increase the production of durum wheat.
How the Supply Chain Was Born It was way back in 1955 when Ercole Cellino took his first steps in the world of cereals in Sardinia, and not in just any territory but in Sanluri, in Marmilla, the land of wheat and bread, known for its lands highly suited to grain production.
After almost seventy years, many things have changed in the Sardinian, national and international cereal sector. The world has been crossed by wars, economic crises, pandemics, which have influenced a market, that of durum wheat, increasingly uncertain and dependent on the climate changes of recent decades.
The Cellino Group, even before it could be called a group, when it produced only with the historic Molino di Sanluri (whose production capacity made the island independent from imported flours) placed the relationship with local farmers at the basis of its activities. A continuous exchange of information, advice, negotiations and common projects that Mr. Ercole (Cellino, ed.) maintained with the Marmillesi farmers, a habit and necessity that Molino Simec still carries forward today.
Mr. Ercole understood how important the Sardinian cereal tradition was, but above all how important it was to protect and enhance it. This mission was formally realized in the most recent 2018, when from a handshake between the Molino Simec di F.lli Cellino and more than 300 Sardinian farmers the first 100% Sardinian durum wheat supply chain was born.
