TIMELINE

A Family Story

This is the story of the Gallo family, of milling quality wheat, with origins as far back as the second half of the nineteenth century when our forefathers managed water mills in eastern Sicily owned by powerful local barons.

WE ARE ROOTED IN OUR PAST BUT FOCUSED ON THE FUTURE

1955

Growth through passion and commitment

Two young cousins, direct descendants, led by Paolo Gallo, establish the first San Paolo company, building a new mill to process seven tonnes of durum wheat per day.
These are difficult times, and any new business or project is seen as a pipe dream. Nevertheless, the willpower, determination and passion derived from their miller heritage make it possible to overcome the many challenges to come.
After just eight months, production increases to 10 tonnes per day.

1955

1958

Constantly moving forward

A new building is erected next to the mill for the cleaning and storage of wheat.

1966

Increased production capacity

Expansion of the premises in previous years enables installation of new milling systems and equipment, increasing milling capacity to 45 tonnes per day.

1966

1975

Preserving tradition and embracing innovation

A new industrial milling plant is set up, with a capacity of 90 tonnes per day.

1981

The business transfers to S.p.A. status

Molino San Paolo changes its legal business status, becoming an Italian public limited company.

1981

1983

Expansion into new markets

The bold vision and conviction of Salvatore Gallo, with the support of the entire family, fuel construction of a new facility for the milling of common wheat: Molitoria San Paolo S.p.A., founded just a few kilometres from the port of Siracusa, with an initial capacity of 50 tonnes per day.

1992

Growth for independent production

The first important modernisation of the Siracusa facility takes capacity to 100 tonnes per day and two large silos are built for storing wheat unloaded directly from the ships. This makes the facility independent from the city’s port silos.

1992

2000

Increasing potential with new projects

A large warehouse is built at the Molitoria site to house new automatic sack-filling lines, silos for finished products and storage of pallets ready to ship.

2009

A new milling plant opens

Technical and production demands, combined with logistical requirements, prompt relocation of the durum-wheat processing plant, which has reached a milling capacity of 150 tonnes per day over the years but has also seen numerous residential buildings added in the surrounding area. A new plant is built with a production capacity of 240 tonnes per day, making it one of the most cutting-edge in the industry, also due to sophisticated machinery for cleaning wheat and in-line checks on the finished product.

2009

2011

Committed to advanced production

The plant for processing common wheat is entirely modernised and expanded to greatly reduce energy consumption and increase food security. A new sunken pit is installed for receiving raw materials, new silos for storage of raw materials and new silos for by-products.

2016

Promoting green energy

A 350 kW solar plant is installed at Molitoria San Paolo, to meet the energy demands of our facility.

2016

2017

Increasing logistics capability

Two new warehouses are built to store finished products on pallets, serving the Siracusa facility. Floor space and loading bays for vehicles are doubled, strengthening logistics capabilities to improve services and accelerate transportation of goods.

2018

Greener and greener

At Molitoria San Paolo a new sack-filling line is opened, complete with in-line weight checks and sealing machine for valve sacks. The solar plant is upgraded to 150 kW.

2018

2019

More space for wheat storage

New market demands lead to the creation of five new silos for the storage of raw materials and a new warehouse for palleted finished products. A new packing line is installed for 1 kg and 5 kg formats and the solar plant is upgraded to 450 kW.

2022

Quality remains the priority

We improve the quality and safety of facilities: at Molino San Paolo a latest-generation optical sorter has been installed with colour and infra-red technology. Additionally, an in-line monitoring and control system has been implemented for the production process with specially developed MES tracking. Both facilities have doubled packing and palleting capacity with weight-checking equipment, metal detectors and ultrasound sealing technology.

2022

2023

Renewable energy production increases

A new section of the photovoltaic system is added at Molitoria San Paolo, bringing the total installed capacity to 1 MW. The new installation uses latest-generation panels and control systems, enabling the plant to generate 97% of the energy it consumes annually.

2024

New silos for soft wheat storage

To meet the requirements of supply chain contracts with Sicilian farmers, additional silos are built for soft wheat storage. The new facilities allow higher-quality lots to be stored separately.

2024

2025

A new automated high-bay warehouse

The project for a new automated high-bay warehouse with a capacity of 1,000 pallet positions takes shape, introducing a significant technological innovation to Sicily's milling industry.

2026

A new plant dedicated to wholemeal flours

Molitoria San Paolo builds an advanced blending plant exclusively for wholemeal flours. The new plant makes it possible to meet specific requirements through recipes formulated according to the size and proportion of the bran flakes, or the addition of nutraceutical ingredients.

2026