In Parma resides one of the most important gastronomic libraries in Italy, offering to researchers and enthusiasts more than 6,700 volumes on food and gastronomy.

Parma, May 5, 2005

After long preparation and painstaking cataloguing, Academia Barilla opens the doors to its rich gastronomic collection, offering to experts and food lovers one of the most important private collections on this subjects in Italy. It contains more than 6,700 volumes treating all the themes and areas related to food and nutrition.

One year after the inauguration of its premier international centre devoted to the promotion, protection and development of the art of Italian Gastronomy, Academia Barilla today enriches its resources through an instrument indispensable for achieving its mission.

Paolo Barilla, who presided over the inauguration, emphasized: "A year after its establishment we are extremely satisfied with Academia Barilla: it is today the only centre that actively promotes in Italy and abroad the culture of Italian gastronomy. And the gastronomic library that we are inaugurating today is in itself the first of its kind in Italy and abroad. It represents from today onwards a crucial reference point for the world of culture and gastronomy."

The gastronomic library of Academia Barilla is composed of a rich collection of texts related to in the evolution of food and nutrition. While some of its volumes date back to the 16^th century, others have come fresh off the press. In addition, further acquisitions are planned for both recent publications and historical texts. Gianluigi Zenti, director of Academia Barilla, has stated: "We think of the Gastronomic Library as an instrument for refreshing one's understanding, for research and for study. It is a "collection of knowledge" that becomes a reference point for Italian and international community interested in the theme of gastronomic traditions and beyond. Academia Barilla aims to defend and promote this heritage, and it does so through its educational and training programs, and through selecting the finest authentic products."

Those passionate for cooking and gastronomy can consult more than 6,700 volumes published between the 16^th century and today, subdivided into 870 thematic sections - a breadth that testifies to the completeness and the diversity of the collection. Among the subjects can be found, for example, wine, pasta, greens, desserts, bread, game, fruit, fish, cheeses. Special sections are dedicated to food-related publishing, the history and the culture of food, recipe collections of the great chefs, culinary interests of famous people, nutritional problems, primary ingredients and their correct use, as well as to panoramas of regional Italian and international culinary traditions. One section comprises of historical volumes from the 1800s and there is also an ample section of specialized magazines (more than 30 titles). Among some of the more peculiar titles you can find: "Four banquets dedicated to the four seasons of the year" by Carlo Nascia (the court cook of the Farnese family), "The cuisine of Giuseppe Verdi", "The recipes of the Duce", "The Italian cuisine of the Resistance movement," "Buon appetito Sanctity", "The cuisine of the monasteries" and "Food and Love" by sexuologist Willy Pasini.

Thanks to the support by the city of Parma and a special agreement stipulated on May 28^th 2004, the Gastronomic Library has been inserted into the National Library System. Fiorenzo Sicuri, president of the Libraries Institute of the city of Parma, has explained that this agreement allows easy and immediate web access to a unique collection that enriches the national heritage. From today the Gastronomic Library officially belongs to Academia Barilla, and it is located in the heart of Barilla Center, a few minutes from the historical center of Parma - the capital of Italy's Food Valley. The books, due to their value and rarity, cannot be taken out and can only be consulted, after making an appointment at 0521/264060, inside the library's Hospitality Room.