4 dairy companies at the world's largest cheese event

The Natisone and Torre Valleys will be the protagonists of "Cheese," the world's largest biennial event dedicated to raw milk cheeses, taking place in the town of Bra (Cuneo) from Friday, September 19th to Monday, September 22nd. It will be a valuable opportunity not only to showcase the excellent products of four farms in the Friulian Slavia region, but also to promote the entire region from a tourism perspective.

"This year, the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region has decided not to have its own stand at Cheese," explains Caterina Dugaro, deputy mayor of Stregna, a restaurateur, agricultural entrepreneur, and member of the Natisone and Torre Slow Food Travel Community. "However, we were able to organize our own stand thanks to the valuable collaboration with DMO Turismo Benečija, the tourism arm of the Institute for Slovenian Culture in San Pietro al Natisone. The organization not only funded the stand and the promotional materials, but will also be participating in the event with its own staff."

Local cheeses will not be sold at the stand—the logistics would have been too complex for our small farms—but a postcard will be distributed featuring all four participating producers (Manig farms in Tiglio, Zore farms in Taipana, Corte Soffumbergo farms in Campeglio, and Capre Felici farms in Pegliano). A postcard dedicated to the Malon Slow Food Presidium will also be distributed, featuring all the participating farms, and a placemat with information on all 50 producers involved by the Slow Food Travel Natisone e Torre Community.

Then there will be two important events highlighting the flavors of the Natisone and Torre Valleys. On Friday, September 19th, at 6:00 PM, there will be a cooking show (tickets, which are paid, are already sold out and sold out in just a few hours). "The local cuisine will be presented through Štakanje," explains Dugaro, "a dish that, with various seasonal ingredients, is a staple year-round. A Slow Food speaker will be present during the cooking show, asking questions to help highlight all the local specialties. Also on Friday the 19th, at 9 p.m., a tasting will be held at the Osteria dell'Alleanza dei Chiochi di Slow Food (also for a fee). We will offer an appetizer of cheeses made by the four Benecía dairies, accompanied by Malon products (a spreadable cream and a pickled vegetable made by Azienda Agricola Angolo di Paradiso in Cravero, which have already been awarded the coveted quality snail by a Slow Food tasting panel). The second course will be a game-based main course, venison morsels, accompanied by Štakanje, made by Trattoria "Da Walter" in Altana. This event is part of the 2025 fall edition of Invito. for lunch which will be dedicated to game meat.