The romagnola cooperative that has been producing cutting-edge olive oil for 50 years

The story of CAB Terra di Brisighella began in 1975. This cooperative, a benchmark for the olive oil sector in Romagna, is based in the municipality of Brisighella. An excellence in the region, this year it has received the prestigious "Cooperative of the Year" award, in collaboration with Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena. The prize was awarded during the presentation of the 2025 Oli d’Italia guide by Gambero Rosso in Verona, at Sol2Expo.

Today, the cooperative has 630 members, 105,000 olive trees covering over 450 hectares, and in addition to its renowned "green gold", it also produces wine, preserved vegetables, cheeses, cured meats, jams, and other local specialities.

The history of the cooperative and Italy’s first PDO

The journey began in 1962, when a group of farmers decided to collaborate to promote local wine and olive oil production. The first olive mill was installed in 1972, helping to recover the region's ancient native olive cultivars—Nostrana di Brisighella, Ghiacciola, and Orfana—while gradually incorporating modern technology, upgrading facilities and extraction techniques over the years.

In 1975, thanks to an idea from the cooperative’s members, the Brisighello was born. It immediately became the company’s flagship product, thanks to a strict self-imposed production code, which later served as a precursor to European regulations. This led to the recognition of the Brisighella PDO in 1996, one of the first Protected Designations of Origin in Italy, alongside Aprutino Pescarese and Sabina.

From the very first production, each bottle was numbered and accompanied by a booklet containing the handwritten signatures of the individual producers who contributed to it, certified with a notarial stamp and signature.

2018: the arrival of new technology at the olive mill

The olive oil processing plant was renovated in 2018, with a continuous two/three-phase extraction system equipped with cutting-edge technologies to ensure an ever more precise and efficient extraction process.

A conditioning device was installed to control the temperature of the olive paste as it exits the crusher, ensuring the best possible quality outcome, regardless of climate conditions.

The new system is designed with a circular economy approach, allowing for the complete and efficient reuse of olive oil production by-products. In particular, it features a system for separating the olive stone from the virgin pomace. Both by-products are fully recovered:

• The olive stone is used for domestic heating
• The virgin pomace is used for energy production

"This project," says President Sergio Spada, "is our cooperative's response to the need for innovation. It marks a key milestone in our positioning strategy, which is part of a broader process of renewing our brand identity."

The pursuit of quality and the commercial strategy

Since 2016, with the aim of enhancing and improving its production quality while preparing for the future, CAB Terra di Brisighella has undertaken a multi-year investment programme involving all aspects of production.

The transformation started with the state-of-the-art olive mill, followed by:

• A research project on extraction methods, in collaboration with Unibo (University of Bologna)
• A revamp of the storage facilities
• The development of new packaging solutions to preserve the organoleptic properties of the oil

To reach its target market, the cooperative has activated all available sales channels, including:

• Traditional retailers, such as historic shops linked to the region’s tourist trade
• Large-scale distribution (GDO), with dedicated formats and labels
• Ho.Re.Ca. (Hotels, Restaurants, and Catering), with a new product line specifically designed for this sector
• A modern e-commerce platform, integrated with social media marketing