From red or brown cows, mountain or organic, table or meditation, halal or kosher: by now, Parmigiano Reggiano PDO is increasingly declined in many deluxe versions, and “more than 12 percent of the production has an additional process certification to the PDO designation,” says Nicola Bertinelli, President of the Protection Consortium.

Over 490,000 wheels of Italy’s king of cheeses offer distinctive characteristics and fetch above-average selling prices. In this respect, the most significant segment is the mountain product: with over 850,000 wheels (one-fifth of the total), Parmigiano Reggiano is the most important Italian PDO product with this certification.