Token projects 2026 - Rolling call for applications

For the year 2026, an extra budget of € 250,000 has been allocated to support Token Projects.

Four different participation levels are available:

• Bronze: €2,000 – Product & Materials Focus

Activities to establish a presence in new channels and markets, covering product and materials costs.

• Silver: €4,000 – Communication Focus

As Bronze, but with the addition of on-site product activities, in-store promotions with tastings managed by hostesses or brand ambassadors, wheel-cutting events, event sponsorships, etc.

• Gold: €6,000 – Fairs & Events Focus

As Silver, but with the addition of participation in international trade fairs and the organization of a proprietary event abroad, with the goal of exploring new markets and gathering contacts for future potential commercial benefits.

• Platinum: €12,000 – Focus on Markets Outside the EU and North America

On a pilot basis for the remainder of 2026, the Consorzio is launching a new token category: Platinum Projects. These are targeted activities in high-cost channels (airports, hotels, etc.), where achieving the 10-tonne target required for special contributions is more challenging.

ATTENTION: product listings that are not incremental for the partner and/or chain are excluded.

Platinum projects cannot be replicated in subsequent years.

Each eligible beneficiary may submit a maximum of:

• 2 Bronze, Silver, or Gold projects

• 1 Platinum project

Projects may be submitted on a rolling basis from the date of publication of these guidelines and no later than 15 September 2026.

Projects will be evaluated in chronological order of receipt. The Consorzio will communicate the outcome within 3 weeks from the date of submission, with pre-approval for funding until the budget is exhausted.

The contribution recognized by the Consorzio, disbursed on a post-completion basis, will cover 100% of the action cost and may not exceed €24,000 in total per operator (corresponding to a maximum of 2 GOLD projects at €6,000 each and 1 PLATINUM project at €12,000).

Activities for which a contribution is requested must not overlap with activities in which the Consorzio is already a participant, or with activities already submitted and approved under other contribution schemes.

Participation criteria must include:

• For any in-store promotion and consumer communication activities, use of the official Parmigiano Reggiano merchandising and adherence to the “leaflet/online banner guidelines” developed by the Consorzio (ANNEX 2).

During the year, the Consorzio will carry out checks on the proper execution of planned activities, directly or through specialized agencies. This may also involve a specific accounting and documentary review, potentially at the company’s premises (an activity that the beneficiary authorizes by accepting these Guidelines).

Applications will only be accepted through the portal available in the Reserved Area under the “Contributi Operatori e Caseifici” (Operator and Dairy Contributions) section at: ar.parmigianoreggiano.it. Through this portal, operators can upload required documents and monitor the status of their application. The DECLARATION OF ACCEPTANCE FOR TOKEN PROJECTS 2026 (ANNEX 1) must also be uploaded via this portal. Any variation from what was previously submitted must be communicated in advance, under penalty of forfeiture of the contribution.

ACCESS CRITERIA 2026

Applications for funding may be submitted by commercial operators (operating in trade, retail, industry, and HoReCa channels), packagers, and member dairies:

• Who have signed the DECLARATION OF ACCEPTANCE FOR TOKEN PROJECTS 2026 (ANNEX 1).

• Who have joined the “Nielsen Sell-in Operators” project agreement and regularly submit monthly data.

• Who export a minimum of 50 tonnes per year (for international projects only).

• Who have regularly submitted their respective warehouse stock data as part of the ISMEA STOCK project.

PROCEDURES

All documentation required by these guidelines must be completed and/or uploaded to the dedicated portal at ar.parmigianoreggiano.it as per the attached manual (ANNEX 3).

All activities must be completed by 31 December 2026.

DISBURSEMENT OF CONTRIBUTIONS

The contribution will be disbursed on a post-completion basis, following formal approval of the final report by the Consorzio (reviewed by the Office and finally approved by the Executive Committee).

Please note that:

• The effective token level recognized may be reduced in the event of non-compliance with the Guidelines, or late submission of advance calendars or materials for approval during 2026.

• The amount disbursed may in no case exceed the maximum amount assigned.

The final report must include:

• The final project schedule.

• Accounting documents proving the completion of activities.

• Audio-visual materials and photographs of the activities.

• The commercial operator’s report on activities carried out.

SUSPENSION CLAUSE

Should the beneficiary be party to pending disputes against the Consorzio before national courts or in arbitration, the Consorzio will retain the amounts as a guarantee to cover, in the event of a ruling adverse to the claimant, the internal and external costs incurred by the Consorzio in managing the dispute and not otherwise reimbursed by the court.

RATING

Operators accessing the 2026 contributions are subject to a subjective assessment (rating) based on: 1. new serious non-conformities identified by OCQ-PR in the three-year period 2023/2025; 2. new violations sanctioned and/or reported by CFPR supervision to official bodies and/or sanctioned by other competent national authorities (Icq, Nac, Nas, Cfs) in the three-year period 2023/2025; 3. serious anomalies identified within the Consorzio’s Grated and Portioned Cheese Surveillance Programme; 4. any discrepancies found during the mandatory accounting audit conducted by a leading auditing firm appointed by the Consorzio.

In the event of a “negative” rating, the Consorzio reserves the absolute right to reduce the amount of contributions recognized to the operator.