We all know the proverb: “It takes a village to raise a family.” It also takes a village to make great cheese. We explore what this means to Atalanta Corporation’s Italian cheese brand, IL Villaggio, to start off season two of Meet the Maker. Atalanta Senior Brand Manager Katie Baldwin and Evento co-founder Sam Akiba discuss a recent partnership that led to social media success, the importance of authenticity when it comes to Italian food products, and how important live cooking experiences are for both the brands.

Learn More About IL Villaggio:

https://ilvillaggiocheese.com/

https://www.instagram.com/ilvillaggiobrand/

https://www.facebook.com/IlVillaggiobrand

Learn More About Evento:

https://www.ciaoevento.com/

https://www.instagram.com/ciaoevento/

In the eighth episode of Meet the Maker, DeMedici Executive Vice President Steve Kaufman explores the secrets of balsamic. Listen in as we explore the history of the different consortiums tasked with defining and protecting the quality of balsamic, and track the different use cases of the products within DeMedici's portfolio.

In the seventh episode of Meet the Maker, DeMedici Imports Senior Business Development Manager Maria Roemer joins the show to talk about the collaboration between MyOliveOilCake and Badia a Coltibuono. Michaela Lamberta of MyOliveOilCake shares how she moved on from her accounting job to create olive oil cakes full-time. Additionally, Lamberta shares her social media success and some of the rationale behind making her product.

For the sixth episode of Atalanta’s Meet the Maker, Mifroma USA EVP Edouard Pieraerts shares the Swiss cheese company’s history and focus on sustainability. Pieraerts traces notable Mifroma product deployments in the U.S., including the microwavable fondue bowl, and highlights new products ready for launch in the U.S. market. Plus: insights from Atalanta's Vice President of Marketing Marissa DeMaio.

In the fifth episode of Meet the Maker, we speak with Germany's Ammerlander, a producer of gourmet cheese products for both retail and foodservice outlets. Ammerlander USA’s Opher Younger joins the show alongside Atalanta Vice President of Marketing Marissa DeMaio to trace the brand’s roots and foundation as a cheesemaker, the company’s formation as a collective, and different applications for both retail and foodservice.

More About Ammerlander:

Ever since seven Ammerland farmers joined forces to form one of northern Germany’s first dairy cooperatives in 1885, quality, solidarity and trust have been our guiding principles. Our partnership founded on shared values enables us to achieve far higher quality standards than are required by law. This fundamental mutual respect applies to our local farmers as well as to our partners and customers around the world. You can rely on that.

It is a long way from the first production step to the finished product. That path continues from one of our two modern and efficient production sites in northern Germany out into the world. Today we are able to supply customers in more than 60 countries with our dairy products from the Ammerland region. This success shows that our products and our flexibility in responding to customer needs are also valued internationally. We already export around 50 percent of our products, and that share is rising. After all, everyone likes quality.

There’s no farming without nature. And without sustainable farming, there can be no high-quality dairy products. That is why our region is managed responsibly – to ensure that Molkerei Ammerland remains what it always has been: reliable and efficient.

To Learn More About Ammerlander, Please Visit:

https://www.ambassadorfoods.net/ammerlander

https://molkerei-ammerland.com/en/about-us

It’s not every day you get to speak with the owner of a 1,000-year-old company, but that’s exactly what happened when Emanuela Stucchi Prinetti joined Meet the Maker. Emanuela traces the roots of her company, Badia, as an abbey before being purchased by her family in 1846, and how her family helped pioneer the bottling of extra virgin olive oil. Emanuela also shares other projects and interests Badia currently engages with, while DeMedici executive vice president Steve Kaufman shares his thoughts on the unique relationship between the two companies.

More About Badia a Coltibuono:

Since 1846 Badia a Coltibuono has belonged to the Stucchi Prinetti family. Six generations have succeeded with passion and respect for its extraordinary legacy. The Stucchi are to be considered pioneers of Chianti, having invested in this land since 1846 when their ancestor, Florentine banker Michele Giuntini bought the beautiful property.

Since then the property begun to flourished. Passed along in the 1930’s to Maria Luisa Giuntini, she managed and transformed the property until the late 1950’s, when her son, Piero Stucchi Prinetti, took charge of the property.

He began to bottle the best vintages of the estate’s Chianti Classico Riserva, selling them both on the domestic and international markets. He was the first to realize the potential of another traditional product of the region: extra virgin olive oil.

Piero’s wife, Lorenza dé Medici di Ottajano, author of many book on recipes started in the 1980’s a cooking school program. Emanuela, Paolo and Roberto Stucchi Prinetti, brothers are today’s owners and managers of the property.

Learn More:

https://www.coltibuono.com/en/

https://www.demedici.com/

https://www.demedici.com/producers/view/producer/code/badia/

In the third episode of Atalanta's Meet the Maker, we speak with Spain's Portomar, a producer of canned seafood and more. Portomar's Araceli Pelaez and Joan-Gonzalez-Bueno join the show to discuss the company's history and current production line, while DeMedici Executive Vice President Steve Kaufman shares why the company chose to import their products.

In this episode of Atalanta’s Meet the Maker Podcast, we highlight Viru, a Peruvian food maker. Viru CEO Yoselyn Malamud and Business Development Manager Leslie Pinto share what differentiates their packaged vegetable products from other makers on the market, and also trace the company’s history to the present day. Atalanta’s Director of Business Development Daniel Sanchez also joined the show to highlight how valuable a partner Viru is for the company, and how they pivoted to ensure steady supplies during the pandemic.

More About Viru:

We are a global company, a leader in the agro-industrial sector and the largest producer of canned and frozen fine fruits and vegetables in Peru. For 27 years, we have been cultivating, processing and developing tailor-made solutions for the most demanding markets and consumers around the world. We are a modern and dynamic company. We employ the latest advances in production technology and ensure effective logistics to ship our products to the five continents.

To Learn More About Viru, Please Visit:

https://www.viru.com.pe/en/about-viru/

In the first episode of Atalanta’s Meet the Maker Podcast, Sodiaal Americas Sales Director Sebastien Ladj shares the story of Entremont, a French cheese maker. While discussing new cheese varieties and production changes stemming from the pandemic, Ladj highlights Entremont’s new range of retail cheeses. Additionally, Atalanta Director of Marketing Marissa DeMaio explains Atalanta’s French Connection program.

More About Entremont:

Entremont, the flagship brand of Sodiaal, is committed to crafting cheeses with 100% French milk from our cooperative dairy farms. Meaning "between mountains," Entremont started in 1948 when the three Entremont brothers, François, Marius and Edouard, began maturing and selling Emmental in Annecy, Savoie, in the heart of French Alps. Over the years, Entremont extended its portfolio and cheese know-how by merging with different French cheese companies throughout the French mountains.

Thanks to its impeccable local sourcing, Entremont provides a wide variety of PDO, PGI and specialty cheeses that reflect their unique land and tradition. Entremont is France's number one producer of Emmental, Comté, Bleu d'Auvergne and, Cantal, and many more cheeses. Our mission is to bring people together through a shared love of cheese. Join us on a journey through the mountains and valleys of France and discover a world of fine cheeses.

To Learn More About Entremont, please visit:

https://www.entremont.co.uk/

https://www.atalantacorp.com/brands-detail.php?Entremont-9771