GI protection revives caper production on Pantelleria

• Author: Michele Evangelista/Catherine Jewell
• Position: Lisbon Registry/Information and Digital Outreach Division, WIPO

Tell us about Bonomo & Giglio and its origins

The small island of Pantelleria, which lies off the southern coast of Sicily,

is home to what some consider to be the world's best capers.

(Photo: Courtesy of Bonomo & Giglio)

Two cousins, Antonio Bonomo and Girolamo Giglio from Pantelleria, set up the company in the aftermath of the Second World War. In September 1943, when Italy signed the Armistice of Cassibile with the Allied Forces, Antonio Bonomo, my wife’s grandfather, was serving as a soldier in northern Italy. Following the Armistice, he decided to quit the army and return home to Pantelleria. However, as it was still too dangerous to travel across Italy, he decided to stop for a time in Reggio Emilia. In fact, that’s where he met his wife and settled. In the post-war years, he began arranging shipments of traditional products, such as capers and grapes, from Pantelleria to Reggio Emilia. He saw that his relatives and friends delighted in their quality and unique flavor and that prompted him to set up a company with his cousin, Girolamo Giglio. They called the company Bonomo & Giglio. At first, they sold grapes and capers, but in the 1970s, they decided to focus exclusively on capers. After the two cousins passed away in 2004, as the husband of Antonio Bonomo’s granddaughter, I took over the family business.

Did you have any prior experience of working with capers?

No, I grew up in Emilia Romagna in the north of Italy. When I took over the company in 2004, I had no knowledge whatsoever of capers or any experience of how to run a business like this one. In fact, when I started out, I was fighting against the odds because caper production in Pantelleria was on the decline. It was my wife who introduced me to Pantelleria and its capers. I fell in love with the island’s black rocks and bright sea on my first visit. And when Antonio Bonomo died, I decided to take on my wife’s family business. I was convinced that this wonderful, unique product needed to be appreciated and given value. I’m glad to say that my determination and passion have paid off.

Tell us about your products

Capers are the unripened buds of the flowering caper bush

(Capparis spinosa) also known as Flinders Rose.

(Photo: Courtesy of Bonomo & Giglio)

Today, the company produces and sells capers under the La Nicchia brand. We offer capers in many forms - salted, in oil, dried, and as creams. We also sell a selection of other high-quality products from the island, including honey, marmalade and wine. At first, we only produced capers that were cured in salt. That’s the form of caper that is protected as a GI, the intellectual property right that certifies that the quality of a product is linked to its geographical origin. Then, I began producing and marketing capers in other forms, for example, capers in oil and dried capers. We also began producing derivative products, such as creams and sauces, to meet the needs of a broader range of consumers and increase our sales. Although the GI status of...