CDP: new €43 million supply chain contract for Trentingrana consortium

The operation, carried out together with BCC Banca Iccrea and BCC Veneta, will enable 14 Trentino dairies to invest in new instruments and improve the facilities where Trentingrana is produced, with particular focus on energy savings.

Foster the growth of businesses in the agrifood sector with a specific focus on the promotion of dairy products: this is the main goal of the new supply chain contract supported by Cassa Depositi e Prestiti and BCC Banca Iccrea together with BCC Veneta for the benefit of Trentingrana, consortium of 14 Trentino dairies. The operation falls under the V Supply Chain Contracts Procurement Notice managed by the Italian Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forests (MASAF).

Entitled "Trentingrana: the flavour of quality and sustainability", the project was also promoted by Confcooperative and has an overall value of over €43 million. More specifically, the measure consists of a loan of around €16 million by the BCC Iccrea Group and Cassa Depositi e Prestiti, which is joined by grants of an additional €19 million issued by MASAF. The remaining €8 million was financed by affiliated companies using their own funds.

The resources set aside for the contract will go towards a supply chain which, as well as Concast, lead company of Trentingrana, includes 24 other beneficiaries with the goal of investing in the purchase of new instruments and improving the facilities in which Trentingrana is produced, with a particular focus on energy savings and decarbonisation.

This supply chain contract is joined by a €3 million loan granted to Concast by BCC Banca Iccrea with floating charge formula (with the cheese product used as collateral, thanks also to CSQA certification1) to permit the maturing of the cheeses and support working capital.

Consorzio dei Caseifici Sociali Trentini (CON.CA.S.T. Trentingrana) is a second-level consortium that brings together Trentino dairy cooperatives to market the typical cheeses produced by these businesses (in particular Trentingrana and other lines of cheeses and dairy products). It was founded in 1951 to harness the collective strength of the Trentino's dairy cooperatives, improving cheese sales and guaranteeing the economic sustainability of farmers. In 2024 it registered a production value of over €65 million, an increase of 3.4% versus 2023. Currently, the 14 member dairies represent over 600 farms, which in 2024 produced around 118,000 tonnes of milk, 75% of overall production in the Province of Trento, with an increase of 2% compared to the previous year.

¹ CSQA is a publicly-controlled (Agenzia Veneta per l'innovazione nel Settore primario) certification body active in the Agrifood and Packaging, Sustainability, Life Sciences-Healthcare, IT Security, Services, Forestry and Ecosystem Services sectors.