Inside the pecorino push

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Pecorino romano has long been in the shadow of other Italian hard cheeses in the UK. Now it’s the subject of an EU campaign

Heinz made headlines this month with its take on the UK’s carbonara trend. Its “fail-proof” canned version of the tricky-to-prepare dish was, controversially, designed to be a quick fix.

Foodies were appalled. The canned carbonara was more akin to “catfood” than the traditional Italian dish, claimed Alessandro Pipero of Rome’s Michelin-starred Ristorante Pipero, echoing complaints across X and Italy’s media.

If that carbonara controversy weren’t enough, a second also continues to rage online – this time, centred on which cheese should be used as the dish’s hero ingredient.

Numerous recipes on TikTok suggest grana padano, parmigiano reggiano or even – shockingly – Philadelphia. Absolutely not, says Gianni Maoddi. Genuine carbonara should use only pecorino romano.

As president of the Consortium for the Protection of Pecorino Romano Cheese (the Consorzio), he has skin in the game. But he’s not wrong: pecorino romano is indeed the authentic choice for carbonara.

There’s a reason other cheeses are often used in the dish, particularly in the UK. Pecorino romano, made from sheep milk, has long been in the shadow of the more popular cows milk alternatives on offer, such as parmesan.

But Maoddi and the Consorzio are hoping PDO-certified pecorino romano can emerge into the spotlight – backed by the popularity of classic Italian recipe videos on social media, and an EU-funded push to grow export sales.

Though its name may suggest otherwise, about 95% of pecorino romano hails not from Rome but Sardinia.

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The Consorzio’s €600m in annual sales represents half of the Mediterranean island’s total agricultural output, Maoddi says. The cheese’s Supply chain supports 12,000 families, sourcing milk from three million sheep – double the human population of Sardinia. The naturally lactose-free hard cheese – which differs from non-PDO pecorino – is still made using traditional, manual methods that date back to 2,000 years ago.

Milk is sourced twice a day. Once it’s been filtered and processed, it’s put into vats for curdling along with a ferment called scotta-innesto – which is produced daily by the cheesemaker. The ferment, a combination of indigenous thermophilic lactic acid bacteria, is one of the key elements to characterise pecorino romano.

After the fermentation, the process becomes more complex. In simple terms, the milk is thickened at between 38°C and 40°C and then poured into moulds to cool and harden.

At some point, whey is drained off. The resulting wheels of cheese are branded with ‘DOP’ and ‘place of origin’ marks. They are salted, then moved to a separate store to mature for 14 to 30 months.

The end result is a cheese known for its aromatic, salty, slightly piquant flavour when younger, and an intense, savoury taste when well aged.

It’s the perfect ingredient not just for carbonara but also cacio e pepe and pasta all’amatriciana – both of which require a healthy amount of pecorino romano, Maoddi points out.

The attraction among UK consumers of “very genuine Italian cuisine containing just a few ingredients” therefore presents significant opportunities for growth, he adds.

The UK currently represents just 4% of the Consorzio’s exports – and total export value of about £9.6m to the UK last year was dwarfed by parmigiano reggiano’s UK retail sales of £64.9m [Kantar 52 w/e 12 May 2024].

But against the background of the UK’s enduring appreciation of Italian cuisine, as Maoddi puts it, there are already signs British shoppers are finally waking up to the benefits of pecorino romano.

While the Consorzio’s numbers show a modest 0.9% increase in export volumes to the UK between 2022 and 2023, data from major continental cheese importer Dalter UK shows a 1.6% jump in volumes in the first six months of 2024.

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Pricing and provenance

Both Dalter and Italian producer Auricchio say the cheese’s unique provenance is driving demand in the UK, as are innovations such as lower salt variants and vegetarian pecorino made without animal rennet – albeit to non-PDO standards.

That’s despite significant inflation that has blighted the global dairy sector in recent years. Maoddi notes Sardinian farmgate milk prices have soared from about 60 cents per litre in 2019 to €1.70 in 2024 – an increase of 183.3%. Meanwhile, pecorino romano has seen its wholesale price per kilo jump 180% over the same period, from €5 to €14.

This appears to have fed through to UK retail. Analysis of Assosia data shows five of the top 15 most expensive Italian hard cheese products per kilo in the mults are pecorino romano.

Maoddi, however, stresses the very distinct differences between pecorino romano and its better-known rivals, while also playing up its environmentally low-impact production and the societal benefits of a cheese that helps support rural communities across Sardinia. The EU’s marketing and PR efforts are intended to make these facts clearer.

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“The aim of the EU’s pecorino romano campaign is to make people understand there are different types of Italian hard cheeses,” says Maoddi. “The only thing that’s similar with those other products is that they are all cheeses.”

And even though pecorino romano doesn’t come cheap, the taste of the cheese is appealing to Brits, says Jess Summer, founder of London cheese and wine retailer Mouse & Grape. “It’s such a versatile cheese, with a robust, salty, nutty, and tangy umami flavour that packs a punch even in small quantities.”

Pecorino romano “makes a fantastic ingredient for a wide range of dishes, from traditional Italian to Asian-inspired dishes, and it also pairs beautifully with wine”, she adds.

“But more importantly, it’s also better value than cheeses such as parmesan, as it typically isn’t aged as long but will last a long time in your fridge,” Summer says. “It’s really starting to capture the imagination of British shoppers.”

So, perhaps they’ll start to put aside their cans of carbonara and make the real thing from scratch.