Let's discover the Riso Goio brand: here is our interview

Riso Goio is a company located in Baraggia Vercellese, specifically in the municipality of Rovasenda, that has been producing DOP rice since 1929.

In 1929, a visionary, Ernesto Goio, who until then had worked as a factor for the Counts of Rovasenda, began to rent agricultural land in the Baraggia Vercellese, an area with clayey, less fertile soils that still needed to be reclaimed. With hard work and his savings, Ernesto converted heathlands and uncultivated pastures into rice cultivation, continuing to buy more and more land. Over time, he managed to purchase part of the land and the Cascina San Felice. Later, in the 1950s, his son Pietro joined the company, and thanks to him, it was possible to increase the areas dedicated to cultivation and purchase the Cascina Collobiè with its lands. The company is now in the hands of the third generation, Emanuele, Pietro's son, and thanks to him, in 2007 the European recognition of "Riso di Baraggia Biellese e Vercellese DOP" was achieved. With his son Edoardo as the sales manager, the fourth generation is also preparing to enhance what has been achieved so far.
Riso Goio 1929 is therefore a dream carried on by four generations, who have always worked to sell what they produce, diversifying for the quality of their products.

We love these realities, these producers of unique, certified, and award-winning delicacies: they are true treasures embedded in our Peninsula between seas and mountains and in the most remote streets of villages and countryside. We do not just stop to experience their products, but we want to discover more closely the protagonists of this brand. That's why we sent some questions to those who manage communication with us.

Stay with us to learn about Riso Goio: read the responses!
 

• Who are we talking to?
  I am Edoardo Goio, sales manager.
   
• Is the company family-run? For how many generations and since what year exactly?
  The company traces its origins back to 1929, it is entirely family-run and we have already reached the fourth generation.
   
• Who was the founder? What was the founder’s training or what field did he come from if different from the current one?
  The company was founded in 1929 by Ernesto Goio. His job was as a factor for the Counts of Rovasenda.
   
• What is the true reason or triggering fact behind the birth of this company, and when did it happen?
  Sincerely, I do not know what prompted my great-grandfather Ernesto to found our company. I believe that as a visionary, he had sensed something from this land when at the time rice was not even cultivated. In his youth, when he worked as a factor at the Counts of Rovasenda’s farm, he decided to invest his earnings in land at a certain point. Every time he had some money, he bought land, and from there our company was born, which at the time was the largest and most important in the territory. The fundamental thing was that he was one of the architects of the Reclamation of Baraggia Biellese and Vercellese, managing to create rice paddies by clearing various lands and constructing 3 dams to channel water from the Sesia River, originating from Monte Rosa, through a system of artificial channels to Baraggia to create the irrigation network necessary for rice cultivation. Thanks to all this, with the meeting of the spring water from Monte Rosa, hard and clayey land of Baraggia, and the Mediterranean currents, in 2007 the European Commission awarded the DOP status to the rice from Baraggia Biellese and Vercellese for its superior and inimitable organoleptic properties.
  As I mentioned earlier, I do not know what my great-grandfather anticipated at that time, however, he was right and perhaps had already understood everything: he was able to see 78 years into the future. Unfortunately, he passed away too soon, but I am very proud of him because he left this wonderful legacy to his beloved family. 
   
• What is your relationship with the land of origin and its uniqueness? And why do you want to tell it through your products?
  Our relationship with the land of origin is very close because we give it enormous value, treating it with love and respect. So much so that we decided to specialize in a single variety, choosing the one that best represents it and provides the best in this land. When cultivated here, it becomes unique, changing completely: this variety is the S. Andrea DOP of Baraggia Biellese and Vercellese.
   
• What was the first product you created?
  S. Andrea DOP of Baraggia Biellese and Vercellese.
   
• What is the product you consider to be your "flagship" today?
  S. Andrea DOP of Baraggia Biellese and Vercellese.
   
• And what product throughout the entire history of the company has best carried the beating heart, philosophy, and soul of the company itself?
  Always S. Andrea DOP of Baraggia Biellese and Vercellese.
   
• Let’s talk about today: how much has the company grown since its inception? Can you give us some numbers?
  Unfortunately, for various reasons the company has reduced the cultivable area compared to the beginning, decreasing hectares and production, now we have reached an annual production of 4500 quintals.
   
• At this moment: more tradition or more innovation?
  Our company has a continuous link between innovation and tradition; in fact, we have a cultivation method that makes us unique and that combines ancient cultivation techniques (crop rotations) with innovative techniques (dry sowing).
   
• What has been the most important evolution of the company to reach what it is today?
  Undoubtedly, the turning point was when we opened the brand in 2015 (Riso Goio 1929), and from simple producers, we began to market our rice ourselves, precisely for a matter of enhancement, thus removing ourselves from the market of paddy rice, selling directly and attributing the right value ourselves.
   
• Speaking of the future: what kind of tomorrow awaits the company? Is there any planned change or any new evolutionary process?
  I expect to grow our brand a lot, and if some things go well, I hope to have our rice mill so we can cultivate, process, package, and sell our rice ourselves.
   
• Are you planning to create new products?
  We usually create something new every year, but we always remain true to our variety, which we offer in different formats. We have a line of ready-made risottos always with our rice, to which we add some new recipes. Our latest product that we will be launching soon is a type of triangles made from our rice combined with 4 legumes, creating a chip-like effect with a unique crunch, not fried, with very few calories, gluten-free, vegan, high in fiber and protein.
   
• Having shifted focus to Spaghetti & Mandolino, how important is online sales for you? What has been your relationship with this sales channel in the past, and how do you see it in the future?
  We have always viewed e-commerce positively because we consider it a useful tool to promote our products nationally and internationally. Nowadays, due to the pandemic, we have noticed an increase in this sales channel, and we believe that the future will bring further increases.
   
• Value: what has been, what is today, and what will it be in the future for your company?
  Our company has always had a high identity value, which it has maintained from the past, but today I believe we could raise it even higher because by selling our rice directly under our brand, we can identify ourselves more.

S&M