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S.A. Egidio Galbani

: : g a l l e r y ( 1 ) : :

: : g a l l e r y ( 2 ) : :

At the end of the 19th century, Egidio Galbani began to produce cheese in a little farmstead outside the town of Melzo, near Milano. In 1906 he tried to make a particular "soft, buttery and fine" cheese, called Bel Paese. It became soon a world success. The forward step was the opening of a factory, still in Melzo, in 1911. As business went better and better, the plant was enlarged in 1920, by purchasing an allotment beyond a road. The factory was so divided in two different halves: factory 1 occupied the area built up in 1911 and factory 2 the just bought one. In factory 1 took place mostly productive halls and offices, whereas in factory 2 there were boiler house, laboratories, warehouses and workshops. Today the complex is still divided by the public road, under which runs an underground pedestrian tunnel, connecting the two halves and used in the past only by employee.

From 1920 it assumed the name "S.A. Egidio Galbani" and began to expand itself establishing three new dairies in the Lower Lombardia. During the following years Galbani was definally one of the most famous food industries, technologically in the forefront and manufacturing best seller products, like Certosa and Certosino spreading cheeses. In 1934 it employed more than 1000 people, working on 160.000 liters of milk per day. Always during the 30s the market net developed by the opening of sales offices everywhere in Italy and later in the entire Europe, USA and Argentina. 1936 is another important date: Galbani company acquired "Salumificio Melzese", a meat plant, entering so in the meat business. Because of this, it was built a huge piggery a few kilometers from the Melzo factory, endowed with an own boiler house and a fodder plant.

50s and 60s were fabulous decades, when Galbani was one of the first Italian companies using television to promote its products, regularly partook in 52 world countries. In 1957 Galbani launched mozzarella Santa Lucia, another historical best seller, with the still used slogan "Galbani vuol dire fiducia" (Galbani means reliance). In 1980 the company decided to open a modern high-capacity plant in Melzo: this meant the closure of the older one, in 1982.

"Certosa" packaging division (50s)

Kneader machine (50s)

1930 - "Cremino" advertising

1930 - "Bel Paese" advertising

1951 - "Certosino" advertising

Number of galleries is referred to Galbani factories (1) and piggery (2).