Francesco Vescera
Francesco Vescera is Sicilian by vocation. Born in Vieste, raised in Brianza and arrived in Sicily in the wake of his passions as a naturalist, he then remained there for sentimental reasons which led him to link his name to that of the Parisi bakers, and his work to the recovery of the ancient grain crops. But it is the island of wheat that has conquered Vescera in the literal sense of the term, even if its Apulian-Lombard origins persist in the dynamism and industriousness with which in recent years it has dedicated itself in collaboration with universities and research centers, to study of monovarietal breads – “in primis”, russello, tumminia and margherito – and biodiversity.
But what is most important about his activity is his interest in the enhancement of the territorial system together with the awareness that precisely the territories full of identity accumulations have experienced the most marked development performances and have successfully faced the turbulence of the globalization of production relations and of the markets. In the wake of this entrepreneurial vision, Vescera has chosen the valorisation of ancient grains as a tool to fuel common feeling and cohesion, cooperation and trust, in other words that social capital which is the impalpable underlying infrastructure of endogenous development.
In the same way, his idea of organizing short ‘chains’ involving cereal growers and bakers on the basis of market needs and the orientation of taste should be read, in a close dialogue between the players in the production process aimed at improving the quality of the products from a food and nutritional point of view. And in recent years Vescera has worked with passion and perseverance on this project and her work has not gone unnoticed. Over the years, in fact, there have been institutional recognitions for its products, its entrepreneurial spirit, its cultural vocation, its attention to intangible heritage.
He organized and coordinated the “Agribiviere” 2011 event with, among others, the high patronage of Unesco, he was a consultant to the Agricultural and Food Resources Department of the Sicily Region. Awarded the “Best in Sicily” award as the best baker in Sicily in 2009, a few months later he received the “Golosario 2010” award at the Bologna Fair and participated in very important events: from the G8 AMBIENTE (held in Syracuse in April 2009) to events organized by INDA in Syracuse, coordinator for the Sicily Region of the Bakery at EXPO Milano 2015 and in particular the enhancement of ancient grains. The latest events in a long career in the world of wheat that began almost by chance and then became the starting point for a business project that looks to the territory and its excellence.
