Perciasacchi durum wheat spaghetti 500 g

“Ancient grains” belong neither to pastoral myth nor to industrial marketing: they are the result of scientific research into the rural traditions of Sicily. Some fifty varieties of wheat, durum and soft, survived the so-called “Green Revolution”, which wiped out much of the biodiversity of the island and of Italy.

“Ancient grains” are all the varieties of the genus Triticum grown before the Green Revolution of the last century created new high-yield hybrids resistant to rust, cold and lodging: the pasta industry wanted flours rich in gluten, to speed up processing and drying and increase profits. The so-called ancient grains are hybrids too, but not genetically forced. Compared with modern wheat they have taller ears with dark shades and irregular kernels, are not grown intensively and yield less per hectare.

Scientific debate on their nutritional qualities is very lively, but there is no doubt that the dozens of traditional Sicilian varieties (the most important being Russello, Tumminia, Perciasacchi and Maiorca) are a vital resource for preserving food biodiversity and reviving cultural traditions. Sicilian ancient-grain growers work on short supply chains, with their own methods and stone mills that greatly shape the taste of the flours and of what is made from them.