The morning of Saturday, May 3, began with a guided tour—led by Mirella Troiano and the volunteers of FAI – Pisticci and Valle dei Calanchi Group – of the Abbey of Santa Maria La Sanità del Casale.

The first stone of this religious complex was laid in 1087 on the ruins of a pre-existing Greek-Byzantine coenobium built by Basilian monks. Beginning in the late eleventh century, the Abbey was governed by the Benedictine Order, becoming an agricultural, economic, and spiritual reference point for the entire Metapontino area, until 1348, when the arrival of the plague led to its transfer—by papal decree—to the Charterhouse of Padula. Today it belongs to the Parish of Christ the King in Pisticci.

Santa Maria del Casale was built in the Apulian-Romanesque style, using the typical light-colored local stone. The Sanctuary houses a seventeenth-century wooden statue of the Virgin, a highly venerated sacred image crowned by Pope John Paul II in 1991 during his visit to Basilicata.

Pisticci—known as the “white city” for the uniform color of its houses—was once an important center of painted pottery production. Its kilns were famous throughout Magna Graecia, as demonstrated by the Painter of Pisticci, the conventional name given to this ceramographer, likely the first Italiote to practice this art.

FAI volunteers and members of the Pro Loco also presented an exhibit table displaying several examples—made by students of the Pisticci-Montalbano Secondary School—of bread produced in this area since the time of the Greeks.

At the end of the guided tour, at 10 a.m., the conference “Cultivating Wheat, Nourishing the Community” began in the Abbey Hall, chaired by Livia Pomodoro – holder of the UNESCO Chair “Food Systems for Sustainable Development and Social Inclusion” at the University of Milan—and moderated by Claudio Serafini, Director of Organic Cities Network Europe.

“This is a particularly prestigious and meaningful place,” began President Pomodoro. “A place that once seemed forgotten but has now found a new historical dimension… A visible omen of a gentle, supportive future, attentive to both the spiritual care and material life of communities and individuals. Our hope is that this may happen everywhere—that the world of tomorrow may be a world without divisions, where humanity may finally come together and live in peace.”

The Mayor of Pisticci, Domenico Albano, in extending his greeting, recalled that the city’s coat of arms features an ear of wheat: “It is truly a special moment for our community to host an international event that unites spirituality, culture, and sustainability. Pisticci once again proves to be a place of encounter and growth. We are therefore happy to contribute to the journey of Jubilee 2025. The Abbey of Santa Maria del Casale is rich in history and spirituality—its ruins have been restored, reconstructing the entire structure while respecting its original form… The seed of wheat for us means land, community, and it historically and ideally represents Basilicata…”

Institutional greetings continued with Cosimo Latronico, Regional Councillor for Health of Basilicata: “It is important that this Abbey has been included in a journey of hope represented by the Jubilee. Europe has its cradle in these monastic complexes, which were both religious and cultural centers… Human threads that strengthened humanity and revealed its greatness—threads that also include the Abbey of Pisticci… This journey must reinforce us in this Jubilee year: an itinerary of faith and development, so that the path of hope may prevail over the barbarity that surrounds us and lies within us. This Abbey represents a journey of regeneration not only architecturally for Pisticci, as it is surrounded by a landscape evocative of heartbreaking beauty. This is the great wealth to preserve: the beauty of creating, valuing, and knowing how to care.”

Beniamino Laurenza, President of the Pro Loco, offering his greeting and that of the city of Pisticci, emphasized that this twenty-second stage of In cammino marks an important starting point for Santa Maria del Casale, helping it become better known to the general public and included among major religious, historical, and leisure itineraries.

Gerardo La Rocca, President of ANCI Basilicata, after thanking the local FAI delegation, explored the theme of the day: “Wheat unites culture, identity, and community. Bread is tied to our land, to our traditions, to our soul. In Southern Italy, many granges gravitated around the Charterhouse of Padula. Here stood the granges of Santa Maria del Casale and that of San Demetrio. In the agricultural and spiritual heart of the Basento Valley, Santa Maria del Casale was first Benedictine before becoming a grange of Padula. The Abbey was a vast agricultural and livestock center, with about a thousand hectares cultivated with ancient wheat. We must start from history to arrive at today’s farms and production realities… We launched a competition for the ‘Sigillo Carthusensis’ label dedicated specifically to ancient grains. Everything began with installing a stone mill in the monastic grange of San Demetrio to produce zero-impact flour. Farmers who cultivate organic wheat may request the label: for this purpose, we have signed agreements with 19 municipalities and a pasta factory to reach the final product. It is a network aimed at bringing together these Abbeys and granges under the sign of environmental sustainability.”

Grazia Panetta, Head of FAI Pisticci and Valle dei Calanchi Group, then spoke: “Sharing is one of FAI’s core values, and Santa Maria del Casale is a tangible example. It is an Abbey that— as has been said—contains within itself history, spirituality, sustainable agriculture, and hospitality—always alive and present. We must capture who we are today and who we can become… For fifty years, FAI has worked to protect, promote, and enhance Italy’s artistic heritage and architectural treasures, following the motto: ‘We protect what we love, we love what we know.’ Entering Santa Maria del Casale—beyond its exterior and architectural beauty—we feel the presence of its deepest soul, its history, which is also the history of the men and women—religious and laypeople—who built and lived here. It is the story of all of us, a legacy that forms our future.”

Claudio Serafini opened the conference, starting from its title and suggesting dividing the discussion into three parts: “The first regarding wheat cultivation; the second on the goal of nourishing the community; and the final part focused on today’s context… I would like to begin with two quotations: the first comes from Lucio Corsi’s Sanremo song Volevo essere un duro, relating it to durum wheat. We know that Basilicata—alongside Apulia and Sicily—is a major producer of this grain, a cultivation introduced by the Benedictines. The region counts 264 bakers and boasts a remarkable local supply chain, rich in history, culture, and identity… And this leads us to the second part: nourishing the community. UNESCO has identified 19 intangible Cultural Heritage elements worldwide—from the Mediterranean diet to pizza—two of which concern us closely. What stands out is not the product itself but the rituality, the human process of transforming it. What matters is who makes it and how over time. It is not simply pizza but the person kneading it, seasoning it, and baking it—its context, its color, its place: in this case, Naples… And so it is for wheat: first comes the idea of community, then the organoleptic properties. The same applies to the PGI status requested by Basilicata from the European Commission for the strawberry cultivated here since the 1950s… The second quotation concerns Carlo Emilio Gadda, who in 1959 published in Il gatto selvatico, a magazine owned by ENI, an article titled Riso patrio. Rècipe, essentially the recipe for preparing risotto alla milanese. Again, what emerges is the ritual more than the ingredients… The third part—focused on the present—will discuss prices and the agri-food supply chain, with production costs constantly rising while farmers’ selling prices remain stagnant or even fall. We will speak of climate—recalling the 2015 Paris Agreement— of tariffs and unfair competition… The floor is yours…”

The first speech was given by Viviana Verri, Member of the Presidency Office of the Basilicata Region: “Products such as strawberries or wheat are deeply and historically rooted in this land’s identity: it is no coincidence that the coat of arms of Pisticci displays an ear of wheat… They are key elements in the rural economy at the heart of the Basento Valley. They engage the younger generations, who are returning to farming, contributing labor and female expertise… Basilicata is the Italian region with the largest area dedicated to strawberry cultivation, a distinctive feature soon to receive PGI recognition as ‘Strawberries of Basilicata.’ It is a supply chain and network connecting associations, producers, institutions, and the European Commission. Production began 70 years ago and is well known and appreciated both in Italy and abroad. We recently participated in the Strawberry Expo in Scanzano Jonico… There is a new awareness of the importance of these crops for the entire region: it is a part of Basilicata that introduces itself beyond regional borders. But we must systematize the features worth promoting-from culture to landscapes, all the way to agri-food excellence.”

Next to speak was Tommaso Muliero, a Pisticci-based producer of organic wheat and pasta: “I used to do a completely different job, a freelance profession, but then I became passionate and began cultivating organic products: in the 1980s and 1990s we were among the first to do so in Italy and Europe—a somewhat romantic generation, often labeled as hippies… Today I am a farmer and cultivate wheat: an ancient variety, Senatore Cappelli, considered the father of durum wheat. Due to its lower yield compared to traditional seeds—10–15 quintals per hectare—it had been abandoned for economic reasons, yet it is highly appreciated for its digestibility and high nutritional value, once considered ‘the meat of the poor’ due to its protein, amino acids, lipids, vitamins, mineral salts, and very low gluten content. It is particularly suitable for pasta and bread making. Its cultivation requires little fertilizer, making it ideal for organic farming. Its ear is tall, and its roots are strong and resistant to drought…”

Another story of passion was shared by Alessandro Quinto, President of the Agorà Agricultural Cooperative: “Cooperativism is typical of Emilia-Romagna, and thanks to a man from that region who arrived here, in 2014 the Producers’ Organization Agorà was founded, bringing together fruit and vegetable farms of the Metapontino and the Lucanian and Apulian Ionian arc. It is a district rooted in Basilicata and strongly connected to its territory. We export to 21 countries and care for the products of our land by managing supply chains and building networks. A consortium has greater bargaining power and stronger market penetration. Starting with Basilicata strawberries, we also promote other specialties of Metapontino. Lucanian products are now recognized for their excellent quality, but our focus is also on market dynamics and innovation: for example, in the case of table grapes, we experimented in Piedmont—at the foot of Monviso—with cultivating Crimson grapes particularly suited to the British market due to their darker color and taste, thanks to local soil and climate. Yellow grapes appeal to the German market, green grapes to the French, and black grapes to the British. These qualitative differences also reflect Europe’s cultural diversity, which we must understand—because, more often than not, ‘people buy with their eyes, not with their hearts.’”

After a question from Dolores Troiano, the newly appointed Education Councillor of Pisticci, about organic foods in school cafeterias, President Pomodoro concluded the conference: “It has been a deeply meaningful discussion, from which other themes, insights, and proposals may emerge. Goethe’s phrase—‘Europe was born on pilgrimage’—has accompanied us on this ethical-cultural journey through the abbeys of the Old Continent. And our journey continues, taking new generations by the hand—those who have the right to a better life and future, with fewer difficulties and greater means to overcome them.”

On the same morning, Saturday, May 3, at 12 p.m., in the Hall of the Abbey of Santa Maria del Casale, the round table “Symbolism and the Role of Wheat in Lucanian History” took place, coordinated by Antonio Bettanini, Director of In cammino – Abbazie d’Europa, who introduced the day’s format, divided into three interconnected moments: a conference, a multi-voice discussion, and a final musical or artistic component.

“These are moments of reflection, dialogue, and sometimes debate,” explained Bettanini, “linked by a particular word chosen for each stage: from water to beauty, passion, tradition, and peace-arriving now at wheat, the word selected for Pisticci… Our journey seeks to discover—through abbeys—how much of the future can be found in the sustainable and circular economies of the past… Your task is to guide us!”

The round table discussion was led by journalist Isabella Romano, Deputy Editor of TG1 and television presenter: “With this second gathering, we will go deeper into our roots, speaking about the symbolism of wheat in the history of Basilicata… Let us begin with greetings from Don Antonio, who is in some way our host, being the parish priest and rector of the Parish-Sanctuary Christ the King–Madonna del Casale… I admit, as a Lucanian, that this Abbey is a discovery for me—I had never been here before. It is a beautiful place, and we thank Don Antonio for welcoming us…”

“It is I who must thank you,” began Don Antonio Di Leo, “for choosing this ‘renewed’ abbey complex as a stop on your Jubilee journey—fully restored and brought back to life. The future cannot do without the past, otherwise it is blind—a future without a future… I am a young priest from Pisticci who inherited this parish from its distinguished predecessor, Don Leonardo Selvaggi, who thirty years ago brought back to life what had become a ruin, a place abandoned… Today Santa Maria del Casale has been reborn, guided by the three ‘C’s taught by Don Leonardo: worship, culture, and charity. And to fully realize his vision, the multifunctional center La luce – Don Leonardo Selvaggi was created here in the Abbey, to welcome autistic children.”

Professor Dino D’Angella then outlined the essential historical stages of the Abbey complex in Pisticci: “A structure that already 600–700 years ago had spaces designated for storing wheat after harvest. Its rebirth, as mentioned, is due to the farsightedness of Don Leonardo Selvaggi, who in 1995 declared, ‘These ruins must come back to life,’ and he kept his promise, rebuilding Santa Maria as we see it today… We know the Abbey’s history beginning around 1250, when it had already been operating actively for some time… It was then that Canon Angelo Grammatico, in the second half of the 1600s, compiled on behalf of the Charterhouse of Padula—to which Santa Maria belonged—the Platea, listing the assets, wealth, and organization of the monastic community of Pisticci. Thanks to him, we know of the 15,000–16,000 hectares belonging to Santa Maria del Casale, most of them cultivated with wheat… In the 1400s, the Abbey received authorization from local princes to transport its wheat to Taranto, where it was stored and distributed… And in times of calamity—such as famines resulting from drought, war, or plague—Santa Maria opened its warehouses, its granaries, to the starving…”

Don Gianluca Bellusci, diocesan priest and professor at the Theological Institute of Basilicata, then illustrated the spiritual symbolism of wheat and bread in the Judeo-Christian tradition. From the physical reality of the seed that dies and rises again, to the Eucharistic and sacrificial rite of broken bread: “I would like to begin with a cultural consideration: why do we address the spiritual dimension of wheat? Because there exists around it a symbolic perspective common to all religions—particularly Judaism and Christianity—where it has profound roots. I make this premise because it represents one of the points of tension between religion and modernity, as interpreted in the West… Symbolic interpretation frees reality from its strictly utilitarian function—even regarding wheat. Religions perceive in reality not only its immediate practical purpose-however noble and essential to survival, such as nourishment-but also what reality reflects on a higher level, beyond mere utility. And this is where the power of symbolism lies…”

The final contribution to the round table was given by Massimo Cifarelli, representative of the Matera Bakers’ Consortium and a third-generation baker. He spoke about his profession: “Bread is a food fundamental to human nutrition and does not exist in nature-it is created by the hands of men and women who know how to make it… If it is true that work ennobles people, then working the land ennobles them even more-and transforming the products of wheat into bread brings humanity closer to the sacredness of the divine… In the rural communities of Basilicata, bread was made at home, and it was especially women who held the knowledge and skill to make it. And this was sacred, as it was often the main—if not the only—food available to a family, a hope for tomorrow… There was no single ‘Matera bread,’ but rather ‘the breads of Matera,’ because each woman made her own, different from that of her neighbor. What mattered most was knowing how to make it—not just the list of ingredients, but the use of uncontaminated organic wheat and sourdough, inside which the territory itself lives, still produced today by fermenting fresh seasonal fruit in water… The ovens were communal, and each family had its own personal mark, which was stamped onto the dough before baking so it could be recognized once cooked.”

In the afternoon, at 3 p.m. in the Abbey Church, the artistic performance “Da nobis panem” was staged, presented through the Sand Art of Anna Maria Pagliei and directed by Mirella Troiano, with readings by Giulia Iannuzziello and musical accompaniment by Mariano Pastore on clarinet and Carmine Mariano on guitar. Through real-time sand drawings projected onto a screen, scenes and stories were depicted from Chapter XII—“The Assault on the Bakery”—and Chapter IV—“The Bread of Forgiveness”—of Alessandro Manzoni’s The Betrothed, concluding with the poem Among the Wheat Ears by Giovanni Pascoli. A delicate and artistically refined performance, greatly appreciated by President Livia Pomodoro and the audience, who accompanied the readings and Pagliei’s instantly created visual compositions with enthusiastic applause.