Anna Garofalo
Innovator
Garritano
Italy
Economic
Rural Areas
Rural area close to city
The innovation journey
Anna Garofalo is the manager of Garritano 1908, a company located in a rural area near the city of Cosenza, Calabria, specialized in the processing of a particular type of PDO fig: the “Fico di Cosenza”. She inherited the enterprise from her mother in 2011, representing the fifth generation developing the business.
Nowadays, thanks to Anna’s innovative ideas, the company, which used to work only a few months a year due to the seasonality of the fig, continues to work all year round. This has led to a diversification of production. New products have been created using local ingredients such as chilli peppers and Tropea onions. Fig processing has been diversified, for instance, with the production of fig honey, a product traditionally made by families in the area. Products made with chocolate are also several. In the factory, they only use local products, and the processing is strictly manual, according to ancient recipes jealously guarded and rigorously preserved. The products, which by Anna’s choice are not sold in large retail distribution, are sold in their factory store and local stores, also throughout Italy and abroad.
Anna also works with schools and other organizations, to organize visits and workshops to show how different products are processed and to valorise local products.
The innovation impact
Anna, together with other local entrepreneurs and farmers, engaged in a long process to obtain the PDO certification for the “Fico di Cosenza”. And now she is the president of the Consortium for the protection of the Fig of Cosenza PDO.
She is very engaged in valorizing local products and food traditions. Since she has been managing the business, it has grown, she has initiated an important communication strategy, invented new products and bought large fridge cells to store figs and thus process them throughout the year. The workshops organized within the factory help valorise specific local food traditions and products also among the youngest generations, in fun and creative ways.