Tradition and innovation: Latteria Soresina’s new challenge with Cama Group
There is a thin thread linking past and future, a perfect balance between the wisdom of those who have made history and the vision of those who look ahead. Latteria Soresina, a symbol of Italian dairy excellence for 125 years, is the emblem of this union: deep roots in the territory and a constant look to the future. To keep ensuring the highest quality and facing the challenges of an ever-changing market, the company has chosen to invest in technology, relying on Cama Group, a leader in industrial automation.
Thanks to the collaboration with Cama Group, one of the best-known players in automated packaging solutions, Latteria Soresina has introduced three new lines dedicated to cheese packaging. This is a step forward that combines efficiency and attention to the product, promptly meeting the market’s needs.
Engineer Davide Arpini, Technical Director at Latteria Soresina, and exceptional speaker during our plant visit, told us: ‘Latteria Soresina was founded on the 5th of February 1900 with a clear mission: giving added value to Po Valley milk by transforming it into quality cheese. In 125 years of history, the company adapted to the times, going through two world wars and modifying production according to market needs, building eight production plants and a brand that – over the years – has become worldwide known.
Arpini continues: ‘Our core mission has always been Grana Padano, the world’s best-selling PDO. A product of excellence, a symbol of our land, of a territory full of small companies, farmers, passion, which over the years we have put together to grow in synergy. This strategy, combined with targeted investments, led the company to expand, to diversify production, including Gorgonzola, cheese that has undergone a real revival and is now much appreciated, especially by young people. What are future challenges? Anticipate taste and needs of the market, keeping the focus on innovation without losing the soul of tradition’.
A history spanning over 125 years. What is Latteria Soresina today?
‘Today Latteria Soresina is a company with an advanced industrial structure, capable of combining tradition and innovation. The recent review of the industrial plan is based on three strategic pillars and on a cost deployment approach, which has allowed us to review and optimise several processes.
In recent years we have been investing in digitisation, focusing on the creation of a twin factory and the implementation of a new Manufacturing Execution System (MES). This system allows production real-time monitoring, improving efficiency and precision. We have a clear goal: provide to future generations a tool able to collect and make accessible 125 years of experience and know-how in just few clicks.
Arpini specifies: ‘The interventions carried out with Cama Group are part of this vision, in which digitisation and automation guide the company’s development towards the future. And the numbers are clear: from a turnover of 80 million in the early 2000s, today Latteria Soresina exceeds 600 million. An evolution made possible by a far-sighted strategy based on data analysis, precision and a high-performance digital system that enhances every production features’.
The new Cama Group lines for dairy Soresina
‘At Latteria Soresina,’ explains Sergio Cornago, sales engineer and sales area manager for Italy at Cama Group, ’we have installed three new packaging lines with the aim of improving efficiency, automation and optimising production space. The first line is dedicated to grated cheese in 0.5 kg, 1 kg and 5 kg bags, with loading into wrap-around boxes. This move has allowed us to replace the traditional American crates, reducing costs and improving logistics management. We have integrated a robotic system with suction cup picking that optimises the production cycle and the arrangement of packaging for palletising.
The second line is designed for cheese portions, in particular triangles with weights from 125 to 300 grams. The system offers ten different configurations, adapting to several product types. Thanks to an automatic orientation system, the packs are optimally positioned inside the boxes, which are then automatically closed, weighed, marked and ejected.
Finally, the third line is a wrap-around that can also make display boxes, consisting of a tray and a lid. It is dedicated to different types of cheese, including Grana Padano and provolone slices, and offers flexibility in packaging, allowing both flat and ‘edge’ loading.
We designed and built these machines with a lean approach, in order to benefit from the Industry 4.0 tax plans. The first line was installed in about six months, in September, with the other two delivered by the end of 2024 and installed in early 2025. In less than ten months we can say that the entire project has been completed and put into operation, an achievement that demonstrates the strength of our collaboration.’
‘The collaboration with Cama Group and the solutions we have studied together,’ adds Davide Arpini, ’are not just an investment in technology, but are concrete steps towards the future, without ever losing sight of the quality and efficiency that have always distinguished Latteria Soresina. Automation and digitalisation, two concepts that are now inseparable, have transformed the pre-packaging of some of our most important products: slices of Grana Padano, portioned provolone and grated cheese.
One of the most interesting aspects of the project, as Sergio explained, was the change in packaging. We switched from an American box to a wrap-around, a choice that not only made the process fully automated, but also reduced costs. The benefits are immediately visible: productivity has increased by over 20% and the numbers confirm this, day after day, through our KPIs.
But we are not stopping there. We are already planning a new operation with Cama to upgrade the grated cheese line for the Swiss market and to introduce a more innovative and faster PEC, with a faster processable film and even more advanced automation.
With Cama, it is not just a question of buying machinery, but of building tailor-made solutions. We have been working together for over 15 years, and from the very beginning we have found them to be a reliable and competent partner. We have tried alternatives, but none have proved equal to the task. Cama has always offered us quality, advice and constant support, which is why our collaboration not only continues, but strengthens year after year.
An important collaboration that once again shows the quality of your technology.
‘We are really happy about this collaboration with Latteria Soresina,’ explained Sergio Cornago. ‘An important company, very well-known and a symbol of quality. Since 1981, Cama Group has specialised precisely in the production of secondary packaging solutions, with a particular focus on the food industry, which today accounts for around 90% of our business. From the ice cream industry to pet food to coffee, we collaborate with major companies, offering highly productive solutions. Although we also have branches in the pharmaceutical and automotive industries, our heart remains in the food industry.
How is Cama Group structured today?
‘Today we have 250 employees, branches all over the world and a turnover of around 105 million euro. Growth has been constant and has led us to consolidate the US market as our main reference for 2023-24, with progressive expansion also towards Asia and South America. Europe, however, continues to represent a key-business segment.
Being always present in the market means constantly innovating, not only in technology, but also in training. It is essential for us to maintain a direct link with schools and to invest in new generations, allowing them to develop specific skills in the field of automation and engineering. Today’s solutions are increasingly robotized and digitised, with complex software that requires highly technical training. The future will be made up of skills and an increasingly effective interaction between man and technology’.
To sum up, Engineer Arpini, Latteria Soresina brings back the territory in its name, it makes you feel, if you will allow us the expression, the ‘scent’ of an area rich in tradition. How important is the territory in your growth?
‘The territory is an integral part of our identity. Without this union, Latteria Soresina would not exist. Our milk comes from here, production is rooted here, and it is thanks to these solid pillars that we have been able to grow, driven by a clear vision and genuine passion, deeply linked to our tradition.
We control the entire supply chain, from the field to the supermarket shelf, guaranteeing quality and traceability at every stage of the process. Our goal has always been clear: to bring the excellence of our land to tables all over the world. Today, 20% of our production is destined for foreign markets, while the rest is distributed in Italy between large-scale distribution, the on-trade and direct sales.
All this is reflected in our values. Describing Latteria Soresina in three words? I would say honesty, dedication to work and resilience. These are the values that have always guided us and will continue to be our benchmark in the future’.
