Melinda Consortium receives Invitalia support for major industrial and logistics upgrades

Bernardo Mattarella, CEO of Invitalia, visited the Melinda Consortium in Cles, Trentino, to inspect recent industrial and technological developments. Melinda, a consortium representing approximately 4,000 fruit-growing families across 16 cooperatives, has completed two major development programs supported by Invitalia since 2024.

These programs involved a total of 37.5 million euros in investments, with 13.4 million euros provided in subsidies. The first program, valued at 27.5 million euros, focused on upgrading the Cles plant to enhance production capacity, automation, and traceability within the Trentino fruit supply chain.

The second program involved the creation of the ‘Apple Cable Car’ (Funivia delle mele), a 1.3-kilometer logistics system developed with the Leitner Group. Funded in part by PNRR-Next Generation EU resources, the cable car connects the Predaia processing center to underground storage cells in Rio Maggiore. This system transports 460 containers per hour, reducing energy consumption by 30% compared to traditional warehouses and preventing over 5,000 truck trips annually.