"Our premium products can be found in the main Italian retail chains at an excellent quality/price ratio. The secret to a good end product lies in the selection of raw materials and in the processes. We handle the products with gentle heat treatments to preserve their organoleptic qualities. In order to guarantee healthy products, we use machines that put automation at the service of the principles of artisanal production," explains Antonio Russolillo, sales manager of the family business based in Campania.
Russolillo is a canning company specialising in the processing of industry tomatoes. It boasts 40 years of experience and is currently being run by the second generation. Antonio Russolillo started expanding the business in 2008 by upgrading the facilities. With the organic production certification obtained in 2017, branded products started being sold in big retail chains, immediately gaining the appreciation of the most prestigious names in the north, and then finding favour with the main players in southern Italy as well.
"We started the campaign on 11 July with the local produce, then continued from mid-August with that from Capitanata (an area in the province of Foggia). The entire organic supply comes from lower Tuscany/upper Lazio, and hill plum tomatoes grown using dryland farming techniques come from the Benevento area, at 800 metres above sea level."
"The production campaign of industry tomatoes was very complicated due to climate change, which caused extreme and opposed situations in different Italian areas. The north saw its production being compromised by the rain in spring, which destroyed the crops even before flowering. The south, on the other hand, was tormented by a persistent drought, which was constant from transplanting in March until the end of August. Such an unstable climate was subsequently characterised by three consecutive weeks of incessant rain in September."
"Nonetheless, we managed to produce volumes in line with the planned schedule so as to ensure continuity of supply with our established customers and the many new ones that joined us in this last quarter of 2024. Such a long production period of three months was unprecedented, mainly due to the 20 or so days when it was impossible to harvest tomatoes between central and southern Italy due to the constant rain in September. This led to a surge in prices due to the shortage of raw material, which actually managed to withstand the floods."
"Our sauce, available in 660 g glass jars, is our flagship product: it boasts all the characteristics of a totally natural artisanal product, with the raw material processed fresh without the use of acidity regulators. Sorting in the fields and harvesting at the right degree of ripeness, combined with processing in a bain-marie, always make the difference in terms of taste and organoleptic properties. The range also includes a line with a territorial outlook, where Pomodorino del Piennolo DOP stands out, also available in the yellow variant, in water and salt."
"As far as the sales channels, we focus mainly on big retail chains, with 95% of our production headed to the domestic market. Currently, 10% of our production is destined for industrial and commercial trade and another 10% is for private labels, a sector that is generally showing a positive and growing trend thanks to new business opportunities and consolidated commercial relationships. Growth drivers include the ability to understand and respond to the real needs of consumers, not only with respect to product quality, but also and above all with respect to sustainability and traceability of production. The future projects on which we are focusing include the improvement of production capacity, in order to start working with a view to preside over the foreign markets and consolidate the domestic market with a high-end product, yet one within everyone's reach, which we like to define as 'democratic luxury'."
For more information:
La Russolillo - Conserve Artigianali
Via Sartania, 20
80126 Naples - Italy
[email protected]
[email protected]
www.larussolillo.it