Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI: what it means to package it.

PDO and PGI: the same European acronym, different rules

The European system of geographical indications includes two main labels: the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) and the Protected Geographical Indication (PGI). Both certify a product’s link to a territory, but with different degrees of constraint.

For the PDO, the link is total: every stage of the production process – raw materials, processing, packaging – must take place within the geographical area defined in the specification. No exceptions are allowed: moving even packaging outside the protected area results in the loss of the right to the trademark for that batch of product. Parmigiano Reggiano DOP, for example, cannot be grated and packaged in a facility outside the production area and continue to call itself such.

For the PGI, the constraint is more articulated: it is sufficient that at least one relevant stage of the process takes place in the specified territory. This does not mean that the certification is less rigorous – it means that the specification can stipulate that some stages of the chain also take place elsewhere, as long as those that define the identity of the product remain anchored to the territory. In the case of Balsamic Vinegar of Modena, the specification establishes precise rules on each stage – from the selection of musts to aging to final packaging – and does so by indicating where each stage must take place.

The specification of Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI

The production specification for Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI – approved by the European Union with EC Reg. 583/2009 and subsequently updated – defines the characteristics of the product in an analytical way: the type of grape must allowed, the proportions with wine vinegar, the physicochemical parameters (acidity, density, dry extract), and the organoleptic profile. It also establishes, precisely, where packaging must take place: in the provinces of Modena and Reggio Emilia, the same provinces where the product is produced and aged.

Anyone who wants to operate as a packer – the technical term in the specifications for the person who fills, seals and labels the finished product – must be registered on the list of operators recognized by the Consortium for the Protection of Balsamic Vinegar of Modena and subject to inspections by the designated certification body. It is not enough to have a plant in the correct geographical area: one must comply with the control plan, pass periodic inspections and maintain traceability of each batch. The identification number of the packaging site, assigned by the control body, appears on the label next to the PGI logo – and is publicly verifiable.

The single-dose format: a specific segment with identical rules

When one speaks of Balsamic Vinegar of Modena, the collective imagination goes to the dark bottle on the restaurant shelf. But there is a segment of the market – growing, across food service, horeca and retail – where the product comes in single-serving formats: heat-sealed sachets, stick packs, single-serving doypacks. Precise dosing, disposable packaging, elimination of the risk of cross-contamination between services.

The rules of the specification apply identically to any format: the quality of the product, its certified origin, and the controls on the supply chain do not change depending on the container. The packaging technology and target market change – not the substance of what is being certified. Single-serve packaging is an industrial application of the same certification that protects the glass bottle on a deli shelf.

It is a format that responds to very real needs: in mass catering and hotellerie, single-serve eliminates the costs of managing partially used bottles and reduces waste. In proximity retail and food e-commerce, it allows the product to be offered at an affordable entry price and with a more manageable shelf life for the end consumer.

Food safety as a system: FSSC 22000

Alongside product and geographic certifications, there is a second level of certification in the food packaging sector – system certification – which concerns not what is produced, but how it is produced. The Food Safety System Certification Scheme 22000 (FSSC 22000) standard was developed in 2009 by the Foundation for Food Safety Certification with the goal of harmonizing certification requirements and methodologies related to food safety throughout the supply chain. It is based on ISO 22000:2018 and industry technical specifications for prerequisite programs (PRPs), currently ISO/TS 22002-1:2009 for food production.

Since February 2010, the standard has been recognized by GFSI – the Global Food Safety Initiative, a global network that brings together retailers and manufacturers to ensure the distribution of safe – consumer goods-and was the first food safety management scheme recognized by GFSI to also receive EA (European Cooperation for Accreditation) acceptance, as of October 2010. This means that all accreditation bodies in Europe now recognize FSSC 22000-a relevant factor for those operating in European and international markets, where certification is increasingly required as a contractual precondition by large retailers and large food groups.

The version currently in force is version 6, mandatory for all certified operators from April 1, 2024, which introduces updated requirements on food fraud, food defense, allergen management and sustainability along the supply chain. The certification is subject to periodic audits by ACCREDIA – accredited bodies-including CSQA Certifications, which is also recognized by the FSSC – Foundation-and the certificate is publicly verifiable in the Accredia registry and on the FSSC Assurance platform at csqa.it/companies-certified.

For those who package PGI products, also having FSSC 22000 certification means offering their customers two complementary levels of assurance: one on the quality and origin of the specific product, the other on the soundness of the production system as a whole. This is not redundancy – it is the structure of guarantees that international markets are increasingly explicitly demanding.

What it means to operate in this system

For those who package Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI, each batch produced is a formal act: a commitment to the Consortium, to the control body and to the end buyer who expects that seal on the packaging to be verified, not self-proclaimed. Traceability is not a voluntary choice – it is a structural component of the certification system, allowing it to be traced back from the finished product to the raw material at any time.

This level of transparency is one of the elements that makes protected geographical indications a real commercial asset – not only for the producer, but for the entire supply chain ecosystem. A large-scale retail buyer, a foreign importer, a food service operator putting the product on their menu: all find in PGI certification a verifiable guarantee, not a promise to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

If you are developing a project involving the packaging of Protected Geographical Denomination products in single-serve formats and are looking for a partner who is already included in the required control systems, we are available for a discussion.

Protected geographical indications are regulated at the European level by EU Reg. 1151/2012 as amended. For each PGI or PDO product, the product specification can be consulted in the official register of the European Commission. If there is any doubt about the authenticity or conformity of a certified product, it is possible to verify the recognized operators directly with the relevant Protection Consortium.