Enrico Citterio, the salami entrepreneur from Milan with a very famous surname, who died at 99 years old, is considered "an institution in the production of Italian salami". The death occurred last october but the news was disclosed by the family at funerals, as it was his wish. 

Enrico Citterio is "grandson" of the salami from Milan, since it was invented by his ancestor, grandfather Giuseppe Citterio who wanted to extend production from seasonal to annual with the objective not so hidden, to arrive in America, Allowing those who emigrated to take with them the taste of Italy. The company based in Rho was founded in 1878 by his grandfather Giuseppe who, after an apprenticeship in Milan as a young salumifier who dreamed of becoming an industrial, chooses to open his sales point in Rho, at the gates of the capital, intuiting the possibility of making continuous food production that until then follows seasonal cycles. He invented a recipe to produce and preserve pork, the salami of Milan, a product designed to get those flavors far for the Italians who emigrate looking for fortune overseas.

In 1878 he bought a plot and built a factory. It starts from here, as you can read on the company’s website, "a success story that crosses five generations of family entrepreneurship". In the 1960s, the company expanded its product range by focusing on regional specialities. In 1974 he arrived in the Usa, opening the factory of Freeland (Pennsylvania) without forgetting his origin in Italy which led to the acquisition of small but important family farms so as to continue producing his charcuterie in their places of origin.

In the 2000s, management is in the hands of the fifth generation: the production site of Santo Stefano Ticino, dedicated to the production of salami and mortadella, headquarters of the laboratory for chemical and microbiological analysis and logistics center of the entire Citterio group. Targeted interventions, including the installation of more than 4,000 photovoltaic modules, will reduce CO₂ emissions by more than 1,500 tonnes per year. Another important recognition comes at Expo 2015, when Citterio becomes ambassador of the Italian Salumeria. A year later, the largest facility in the United States dedicated entirely to ham production opens in Freeland, Pennsylvania.