With fifty square meters of workshop space, the first experiments in a still challenging market. Six years have passed since Fermaggio started producing plant-based cheeses in Cave, about forty kilometers from Rome, and today the demand is growing more and more, prompting the company to open a store in the heart of the Capital.
Fermaggio, the plant-based cheese shop in Rome
The first Fermaggio store will open on June 8, 2024, near Piazza Fiume: “We want to get closer to our customers,” Manfredi Rondina, founder of the company along with his brother Timoteo, tells Gambero Rosso, “Rome is our main market, and few people are willing to come to Cave, so we wanted to strengthen our relationship with our clientele.” Fermaggio already supplies many shops and establishments in the city, in addition to selling in other Italian regions and even a bit in Europe, “mainly Germany, the Netherlands, France, and Spain.” Now, however, it's time to create a sharing space where all the house specialties can be tasted.
Cheeses made from nuts
The latest addition to the company is Ecotta, a ricotta-like cheese, a summer novelty that is already winning over the public. Then there's Mezzarè, “our flagship product,” Better butter, Blu cheese, and Pri (a truly remarkable bloomy rind vegan cheese). We've tasted them multiple times, and the flavor of these “fermaggi” is always well-balanced and pleasant: the base is “cashews and Sicilian almonds,” with no oils or fats, “we work with fermentations to obtain products that are also nutritious, not just delicious” (unlike many industrial plant-based cheeses, which are often loaded with fats).
“Pizza and Mortazza” (Vegan)
In the shop, you will be able to buy them by weight, just like in any deli, “and we will also make platters and tasting boxes.” The most indulgent can also try the products in the classic stuffed white pizza, the Romans' favorite snack, in a vegan version. The pizza will be supplied by the Marchetti bakery, a historic establishment in the Monteverde neighborhood, and there will also be vegan cold cuts from specialized companies. Everything is ready for the opening, “we won’t do a buffet, you’ll have to book online to get a tasting box,” now we just have to wait for the shutters to go up. Certainly, compared to when they opened the doors of the workshop in 2018, the market is now much more mature for this innovation: “We are satisfied, and we can't wait to welcome everyone to the shop.”
Fermaggio – Roma – via Bergamo, 27 - fermaggio.it/
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