Advertorial: The pioneer of mountain ravioli

For 30 years, Roman Bernegger, based in the small Valais village of Ulrichen, has been producing ravioli and fresh pasta in an artisanal way with ingredients from the mountains. A pioneer in the region, it is supported by Coop’s Pro Montagna label.

Strong-willed and somewhat stubborn: two character traits that clearly define Roman Bernegger, 65 years old. In other words, the ideal personality for a life in Valais. Indeed, the inhabitants of the region are known, even admired, for their determination and their strong character. And it is precisely these qualities that allowed Roman Bernegger to found a pioneering company in the commune of Conches-le-Haut. Based in the village of Ulrichen, 200 inhabitants, 1346 meters above sea level, it has focused since the beginning and as much as possible on organic quality for its fresh pasta and ravioli. Thus, Roman Bernegger has been following a commitment for 30 years that other producers only made much later.

From the start, he was convinced that the mountain was the ideal place to set up his production. “Here we have crystal clear spring water and high-quality natural raw materials, which we can obtain without having to travel long distances.” For Roman Bernegger, the use of local products is indeed obvious: “For me, it is important that the creation of value remains in our region.”

First steps in North America

But what led this ETH-qualified food technology engineer from Appenzell to found such a company in the beautiful, if somewhat isolated, region of Valais? During and after his studies, Roman Bernegger worked for various companies, notably at Hilcona, a food supplier, where he was responsible for ready meals. But even then, his heart beat for ravioli.

When his then-girlfriend, now his wife, moved to Canada for her post-doctoral studies, he accompanied her. It was in North America that he began producing ravioli. After three years, they returned to Switzerland after Ms. Bernegger, a biochemist, found a job in Visp, within the Lonza company. And for his part, Roman decided to launch his own production of ravioli in Conches-le-Haut in organic Bud quality – at least as much as possible. In Ulrichen, he benefited from the support of the municipality and was thus able to take over the village’s old alpine cheese factory. Subsequently, he bought the building from the municipality.

After only a few years, the company, which continued to grow, had to expand its premises. Fortunately, a few hundred meters away, on the other side of the village, Roman found a larger building, made available by the army. He was able to set up his business there, on the edge of the military airfield which closed in 1999. “I first kept the kitchen of the alpine cheese factory, in which we prepared the stuffings, and subsequently, I I centralized everything on the new site.” A building which he acquired some time later.

From now on, the site no longer has anything of an aircraft repair workshop. As soon as you enter the premises, a slight smell of food enters your nostrils, and the hot, humid air instantly fogs up the lenses of your glasses. The reason for this humidity? A machine about twelve meters long that Roman Bernegger designed and built himself: the steam laundry. For five to six minutes, the ravioli are exposed to humid heat on a conveyor belt. This allows them to be precooked, but also and above all, as Roman Bernegger explains, to ensure the hygiene of the ravioli and to keep them longer.

Although many steps are carried out by machines, the preparation of ravioli still requires a large amount of manual labor. Thus, Laurent Repond, one of his colleagues, is responsible for pouring the flour, salt and water into the mixer. And the mixture is never exactly the same: “Each volume of flour requires a slightly different amount of water or eggs.”

Then the machine doesn’t just knead the dough into a perfect mass. She also lowers and rolls it. A rolling technique that sets Roman Bernegger apart from industrial pasta producers. In fact, at this stage, they use an extruder which exerts high pressure. Roman Bernegger’s roller “handles” the dough less during rolling, thus giving it a finer structure. Or as the ravioli specialist puts it so well: “A finesse that is found at the moment of tasting. Rolling allows you to obtain firmer and tastier ravioli.”

Ravioli labeled Pro Montagna

Another machine requires human intervention: this step consists of joining two strips of dough in order to form the ravioli and pressing the stuffing inside. Laurent Repond must constantly recalibrate the machine by hand so that the ravioli receive the right amount of stuffing and have a perfect shape. He checks the finished ravioli with the naked eye and eliminates those with defects.

A mechanical engineer by training, Laurent Repond also carries out repairs on the machines. “What I like about this job is that every day is different, and the tasks are very varied.” The dumplings are fed into the steam blancher via small conveyor belts. Then, they are automatically floured to prevent them from sticking, then cooled in a huge room. And finally, the ravioli are weighed so that each package contains the right quantity and packaged.

Roman Bernegger’s commitment to local products and the establishment of his production site in Conches-le-Haut aroused the interest of Pro Montagna, the Coop label which rewards sustainable development initiatives in the regions of mountain by donating part of the proceeds to Coop Sponsorship for mountain regions. The day of our visit, he and his team are preparing ravioli filled with mountain cheese for Pro Montagna, a label for which he has worked since 2007. The wheat comes from the region and is ground at the local mill. The stuffing consists of mountain cheese, ricotta and a sort of béchamel sauce which ensures a good consistency and whose recipe will remain secret. For Roman, having in stock or quickly obtaining the ingredients he needs for his Pro Montagna products is an everyday challenge: “but a challenge worth taking on!”

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