Pane, Biscotti and Everything in Between: Italy

Bread is an important part of Italian diets, but also a food that has great symbolic meaning in religion, family and social life. “Il pane apre tutte le bocche” is an Italian proverb meaning “Bread opens all mouths.” Italians have over 20 different types of bread depending on the region of origin. Breadstick appetizers, ciabattas, foccacias, piadinas… Italy is the perfect place for lovers of various baked products. It’s not only salty bread used for everyday sandwiches or as a side dish, but also sweet breads such as pandoro and panettone, eaten usually at this time of year. 

Pandoro was originally made in Verona. It is a star-shaped, sugar-dusted sweat bread. In the Middle Ages, only the wealthiest families could afford white bread, so this treat got the name “pan d’oro”, which means “bread of gold”.

The modern history of this treat started in 1894 when Domenico Melegatti got the patent for the name, shape and recipe of pandoro. It was eaten during holidays and on Sundays, but, at the beginning of the century, it was even prescribed by doctors to pregnant women since it’s a light and nutritious food. Over the years, the business grew and pandoro was distributed throughout Italy. Today, the Melegatti company offers variety of products for holidays and everyday consumption. The design of the packaging is simple and traditional. With the unusual shape of the box, the designers emphasized the characteristic shape of the cake, and at the same time, with the subtle blue color and big gold Melegatti logotype with a crest they based the design on the tradition. The Melegatti redesign was made by the Italian agency Ardigia Marketing Funzionale and won several prizes.

You can read more on packaging trends in Italy in our last issue of print magazine European Baker.