From the lower Modena to Manhattan: those melons of 45 euros per kilo

They call it the “Ferrari of melons”, because, like the much more famous red from Maranello, it is located not far from Modena and because the prices of its highly sought-after agricultural products have reached, in Manhattan, 40-45 dollars per kilo. It is the Zerbinati farm which, on the border between Modena and Mantovano, produces melons that are sealed with sealing wax, as if they were a bottle of traditional balsamic vinegar, and shipped to the most important international markets.

As the “Gazzetta di Modena” recounts, they are collected in the morning, in the afternoon the products are already on the Malpensa freighters to arrive, the next day, on the American markets and to be at dinner time in the best restaurants in New York. “We decided to focus on quality – explains Oscar Zerbinati, 34 years old, fourth generation of producers to the Modena newspaper – when a seedling is put into the ground, it makes 12 to 15 melons. We select and leave only four to five. It is clear that the flavor and shape are different. Less quantity, more quality “.

But how is it possible that a melon can cost up to $ 45 a kilo? “Currently – says Zerbinati – we have prices that reach 3 euros, which rise to five in the US. Those who buy must put the cost of transport, customs, Trump duties. In the end, the latest overseas prices are around 40-45 dollars. per kilo. The fact is that Americans are used to melons that are light years away from ours.

The next target is Kuwait, with which there are already contacts.

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