The questions of the etwinning reporters

1) Is the semolina you use Italian? Carolina

2) Where is your wheat grown? Annamaria

3) Do you have growers/companies that you turn to to buy wheat or produce it yourself? Carolina

4) How long does it take for the wheat to grow? Elizabeth

5) How many workers work in this factory? Syria

6) Do more men or women work? Antonio

7) How long (in all) does the pasta processing take? Giusy

8) Is the processing of this pasta factory continuous or are there closing times? Alejandro

9) Which machines are used to make pasta? Alejandro

10) In time what has changed in the pasta production? Are the machines different? Syria

11) How many kilos of pasta do you produce in a day? Antonio

12) And in a week? Giusy

13) How long does it take to dry? Pasquale

14) Has the drying process changed over time? Giusy

15) Would you define your production, industrial or artisan? Pasquale

16) The pasta is exported ? Emanuele A

.17) Pasta is best eaten al dente or well cooked ? Daisy

18) Produce gluten-free pasta ? Alessia A. 19) Produce wholemeal pasta ? Alessia A.

20) I read that there is pasta without wheat, but it is not rice? How about a pasta without wheat? Giusy

21) Is Italy the largest pasta producer in Europe? Alejandro

22) Has the way of making pasta changed over time? Benedetta

23) How many pasta formats do you produce? Pasquale

24) Are there quality controls in the production cycle? Pasquale

25) How much has the pasta production process changed? And have these changes been positive? Syria

26) Why is Gragnano pasta so renowned? Francesco

27) What is the most popular pasta format? Francesco

28) The demand varies in relation to the months and parties ? Jasmin

29) How many pasta factories are there today in Gragnano ? Emanuele

The company's answers

1) In the Faella pasta factory we use only Italian semolina, quality Senator Cappelli

2) The wheat we use comes from Apulia and Rieti

3) We buy wheat from our usual suppliers, they are the same for several generations

4) Wheat is sown between mid-November and early December and ripens between June and July

5) About 15

6) The number is almost even

7) It depends on the die : there are some dies, short pasta 20 hours, long pasta, like candles, takes about 50 hours

8) A working shift lasts an average of 6 hours

9) The compactor, the drainage ovens ...

10) Yes, the pastification process has changed and modernized

11) About 7000 kilos

12) About 35.000 kilos

13) Times are different in relation to the process

14) Yes, it has changed very much: from drying in the open air to ovens and drainage chambers

15) Ours is a niche production: certainly not as industrial as the big brands

16) Yes, we export all over the world: America, Japan, Australia, Europe...

17) Definitely al dente

18) No, we don’t have this production

19) Yes, we produce some integral pasta dies

20) It’s pasta for gluten intolerant, so gluten-free

21) Yes, we are the first pasta producer in Europe

22) Machinery has made it possible to produce more pasta

23) About 30

24) Yes, we are the first to want them, because our consumers must be sure of the quality of the product

25) The process has accelerated in just a few respects, but the tradition here is respected

26) They are the excellent raw materials used : semolina and water that make the pasta of Gragnano UNIQUE

27) Spaghetti

28) Yes, near the holidays ( Christmas, Carnival) there is a greater demand for spaghetti, lasagna.

29) The pasta factories Gragnano are 15. many small, few big ( real industries: Garofalo, Liguori, Di Martino )