Nicola Bertinelli can tell a happy cow by its shiny hide and wiggly ears, traits important to him since he retooled his dairy business near Parma, Italy to produce Kosher Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.
“An entrepreneur who has vision must spot what’s missing,” in the market, Bertinelli, 42, said during an interview at his cheese factory, surrounded by 7,000 wheels of aging parmesan. A clean bill of health for his cows is one of many requirements for a Kosher certification.
Bertinelli is among a growing number of Italian companies seeking such certification to increase exports, particularly to Israel and the U.S., where demand is booming. The U.S. kosher market has been pegged at about $12.5 billion, according to Lubicom Marketing & Consulting. Of the 12.4 million people who buy kosher products in the U.S., only about a fifth follow Jewish diet laws, Lubicom estimates. Many consume the products for health and safety reasons or because of other dietary regimens, it says.
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