For over sixty years, the name Rega has been linked to one of the most recognizable symbols of Italian gastronomic tradition: tomato. Born in the heart of Campania, the company has transformed a family history into a brand known far beyond the Italian borders. In this interview, managing director Luigi Rega traces the path that led the company to become an international brand, the challenges of the export of Italian food, the relationship with the American consumer and the importance of growing without losing the link with its roots.
How important is it to be born and grow in a land where tomato is not simply a product, but almost a culture?
That means everything. For me tomato was never just an agricultural product or an ingredient. It is something I grew up with, something that was part of the daily life of my family, our summers, the work in the fields, the establishment and the stories of my grandfather and my father.
Born in a land as ours means to understand very soon that tomato is culture, identity and memory. In Campania, and in particular in the area where the San Marzano DOP tomato is born, the tomato tells the history of the territory, the hands that cultivate it, the sacrifices of the families and the way in which South Italy has been able to transform simplicity into excellence.
I grew up in this story. For me, Rega has never been just a brand: it is my last name, my family, my responsibility. Today, when I bring a Rega product to the United States, I am not simply bringing a can of tomatoes. I’m bringing a part of our land, our culture and our way of understanding food.
How much has the territory and traditions of Campania formed the identity of the Rega brand?
They formed it completely. Rega was born in Striano, in the province of Naples, in an area deeply linked to the cultivation of tomato and the tradition of conservation. The territory was not only our starting point: it is still the foundation of our identity.
San Marzano DOP tomato could not exist without that land. The volcanic soil, the presence of Vesuvius, the microclimate and the agricultural knowledge handed down from generation to generation make this tomato unique. We have grown up with the belief that quality does not become factory. Quality begins first, in the ground.
The traditions of Campania have taught us something very important: respect the product. You don’t have to turn it too much and you never have to remove its true nature. It is necessary to preserve its taste, sweetness and natural character. This has always been the philosophy of my family, and it is still today what makes Rega recognizable.
At one point you realized that what was a family and local tradition could also speak to the rest of the world. When did this pass happen?
I think that passage took place gradually. At first Rega was a deeply local and familiar history, very linked to our land. My grandfather began in 1965 with a simple but strong vision: to give value to what the earth was giving to our family.
Then my father had the courage to look beyond our borders. In the 1990s he began to bring our products to the United States, at a time when talking about authentic Made in Italy was not as common as today. As a boy I used to travel with him in America. I remember the meetings, the restaurants, the first clients and the first chefs who began to really understand the value of San Marzano tomato.
That’s where I realized that our tradition could also speak to people away from us. Because when a product is authentic and brings with it a true story, it can reach anyone.
Americans weren’t just looking for a good tomato. They sought a link with Italy, with Naples, with a culture of family food, table and quality.
What decision has Rega transformed from a company rooted in the branded territory recognized in international markets?
One of the most important decisions was to build a stable presence in the United States through Rega USA. I founded Rega USA in 2010 because I felt that the American market could not only be served with occasional exports. We needed to root there.
At first it was a huge challenge. I was almost alone, with so much determination and responsibility to continue the work my father had begun. But I knew that, to really grow the brand, we had to be present, listen to the market and meet chefs, pizza makers, distributors, families and restaurateurs.
That decision changed everything. Rega has become not only a product imported from Italy, but a brand present, recognizable and close to the American consumer. Today many people in the United States know Rega, know the history of the family, recognize the value of our San Marzano DOP tomato and see our brand as an authentic expression of Italian identity.
Today your products arrive on the tables of thousands of families in the United States. What makes you think that a tomato grown in Campania is used in kitchens in New York, Los Angeles or Chicago?
It is one of the greatest emotions of my work. To think that a tomato born in our land, cultivated in Campania and worked according to the tradition of my family, can arrive in a kitchen of New York, Los Angeles, Chicago or any other American city is something really special for me.
It makes me think how much food can connect worlds far away. An American family that opens a can of Rega tomatoes to prepare a pasta, a pizza or a simple sauce comes into contact, even without knowing it, with a long history almost sixty years. Take a piece of South Italy to your table.
This gives me pride, but also a great sense of responsibility. Because when a product bears the name of your family, every can must be up to the history it represents. We can’t afford to be discontinuous. We must protect the relationship of trust that we have built with the American consumer.
Entering American homes is different from serving the catering industry. How has your way of telling the product changed?
It’s changed a lot. In the catering sector, it is often aimed at professionals: chefs, pizza makers, buyers and distributors. They are people who know the product. They look at the yield, consistency, taste, regularity and the way the product behaves in the kitchen. With them dialogue is technical, direct and very concrete.
Entering the houses means talking to the heart of people. Consumers want to understand what they are buying, where the product comes from, who is behind it and why they should choose it. This is why the story has become even more important.
We want to explain that Rega is not just another brand on the shelf. It is a family, a tradition, a story born near Naples and brought to America without losing its identity. We want people to understand that behind that tomato there is a supply chain, a land, a generation that has worked before us and a new generation that continues today to protect the same values.
What does an American consumer look for today when choosing an Italian product? Tradition, quality or more?
I think you’re looking for all these things together. Today the American consumer is much more attentive than the past. It is no longer enough to see an Italian flag on a label.
People want to know if that product is really Italian, where it comes from, who produces it and what history it represents.
Quality remains essential, of course. But today quality alone is not enough. They need authenticity. It needs consistency. We need a real story. I think Rega strongly placed herself in the American market because we didn’t build an artificial image. We just told who we really are.
Americans love Italy, but above all they love authentic Italy: family, simple cuisine, regional traditions and carefully made products. In our case, they find in Rega an authentic Neapolitan spirit, a connection with South Italy, with San Marzano DOP tomato and with an idea of food that is not only consumption, but culture.
How difficult is it to export a product without changing its nature? Where is the balance between adapting to an international market and remaining faithful to its origins?
It’s one of the most difficult challenges. Every market has its own rules, habits and rhythms.
The United States is a huge, competitive and very fast market. We need efficiency, availability, logistics, service and communication. Having a good product is not enough.
The risk, however, is to change too much to try to please everyone. We have always tried to do the opposite: listen to the American market, but without ever losing our identity. We can adapt the way we communicate the product, improve the packaging and build a more modern distribution system, but the heart of the product must remain the same.
San Marzano DOP, for example, cannot be reinterpreted. Either respect it, or betray it. Its strength lies in its origin, its rules and its uniqueness. Our balance is this: to be modern in the way we bring the product into the world, but deeply faithful in the way we produce it and tell the story.
What are the most complex challenges for an Italian agri-food company that wants to grow abroad without losing its identity?
The first challenge is to maintain a constant quality. When you grow up, when you increase volumes and when you enter very large markets like the US, you must be sure that each product respects the same standards. For us this is possible because we have a strong control over the supply chain, from the field to the transformation.
The second challenge is to correctly communicate authenticity. Today the market is full of products that use the Italian identity as an image, but that do not always have a true connection with Italy. For a company like ours, which is really born from an Italian family and a specific territory, it is important to explain the difference.
The third challenge is to grow without becoming impersonal. Today Rega is present in America, is distributed, recognized and loved by many professionals and consumers. But it must always be a family story for me. Growth should not erase the human face of the company. On the contrary, it must make it even stronger.
Was there a decision that at the time seemed risky but which today considers decisive for the growth of the company?
Yes, surely the foundation of Rega USA. At the time it was a risky decision because it meant investing in a far, complex and very competitive market. We didn’t have the structure we have today. There was a strong vision, but also many uncertainties.
For me, however, it was a necessary decision. I felt that if we really wanted to bring Rega to America, it was not enough to ship products from Italy. We had to be there. We had to build relationships, trust and presence. We had to show the Americans that behind that brand there were a real family, a real story and a quality promise.
Today I can say that decision was decisive. Rega USA has allowed the brand to grow, to become known, to enter both the world of catering and consumer homes. It has transformed a family tradition of South Italy into an international history, without removing it from its roots.
Looking at the next few years, what is the next big goal for Rega? Is there a goal that you have not yet reached but that would like to see realized?
Our great goal is to keep Rega growing in the world while keeping his soul intact.
We want more and more people in the United States and more, understand the true value of San Marzano DOP tomato and the reason why this product is so special.
I would like Rega to become more and more a reference point for those seeking an authentic Italian identity. Not only a brand of tomatoes, but a symbol of quality, family, tradition and respect for the earth. A brand able to tell South Italy in the right way: not as a romantic image, but as a culture of work, raw material and true cuisine.
At the same time we want to continue to innovate. We are working on new lines, stronger communication, organic products and a more modern way to share our history. But for me the most important goal remains one: to make sure that the future generations of the Rega family can look at what we are building today and recognize the same values with which everything began in 1965.
L’articolo The history of Rega, from the heart of Campania to New York proviene da IlNewyorkese.
