When we buy a pack of Gragnano PGI spaghetti, we often take for granted that they are produced exclusively with Italian wheat. Well, this is not necessarily the case, because the PGI certification, in fact, guarantees the link with the territory of Gragnano, in the province of Naples, and compliance with specific production regulations, but does not oblige producers to use wheat grown in Italy. This means that even a pasta made with wheat coming from abroad can obtain the Pasta di Gragnano PGI certification, as long as it complies with all the required requirements.
Clarifying the origin of the raw materials is a survey published by Salvagente in 2025, which analyzed 12 brands of spaghetti di Gragnano PGI, verifying not only the presence of pesticides and mycotoxins, but also the origin of the grain declared on the packages. The result? Nine out of twelve products declared to use exclusively Italian wheat, while the other three reported mixed origin on the label.
The 9 brands of spaghetti di Gragnano PGI that use Italian wheat
According to what was reported on the labels examined by Salvagente, these are the nine brands that declared they used wheat grown in Italy:
These are products belonging to different market segments, from traditional pasta factories to the branded lines of supermarkets and discounters. An interesting aspect is that the use of Italian wheat does not only concern the most expensive packages, given that several large-scale retail products also declare a supply chain based on national raw materials. Naturally, the information refers to packages analyzed in 2025. To find out the origin of the wheat currently used, it is always advisable to check the label at the time of purchase.
Which Gragnano PGI spaghetti also uses foreign wheat?
Three of the twelve brands analyzed declared the origin of the wheat not exclusively Italian:
Be careful, however: using foreign wheat does not automatically mean producing lower quality pasta. This is demonstrated precisely by the results of Salvagente’s analyses, with Garofalo and Eurospin which, despite also using foreign wheat, obtained 9.7 and 9.6 points respectively, ranking third and fourth in the overall ranking. Furthermore, none of the twelve samples examined showed detectable residues of glyphosate or the other pesticides investigated, regardless of the origin of the grain.
Gragnano PGI pasta and Italian wheat: what’s the difference?
The PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) brand certifies the link between a product and a specific territory, but, as mentioned at the beginning, it does not necessarily mean that all the raw materials come from that area. In the case of Pasta di Gragnano PGI, the specification establishes precise production requirements, including processing in the municipal area of Gragnano, the use of durum wheat semolina and water, bronze drawing and specific drying methods. The origin of the wheat, however, is a separate piece of information, which consumers can verify directly on the package.
To be sure you are buying pasta prepared with Italian wheat, you need to look for the wording Wheat cultivation country: Italy. If instead the indication “EU and non-EU” were to appear, it would mean that the product could contain wheat grown both inside and outside the European Union. Choosing Italian wheat may be a preference linked to the origin of the raw materials and the support of the national supply chain, but it does not represent, in itself, a guarantee of greater quality or safety. The conclusion is simple: Pasta di Gragnano PGI and pasta produced with 100% Italian wheat are not synonymous. To really know what we bring to the table, the best thing is to read the label carefully.
