Mario Meloni has died. Not just the historic president of the Sant'Antonio di Tertenia Social Dairy Cooperative, but its last guardian. The man who, when everyone said making quality cheese with just one hundred members was impossible, persisted and continued the mission. He was 66 years old and passed away today after a short illness.
For decades, he was always on the front lines. With the vibrant voice of someone who spent his life between the stables and the dairy, fighting for the price of milk, for the rights of shepherds, for the dignity of an ancient profession. For him, the Cooperative had never been a business. It was a family of a hundred or so members who delivered their milk and their trust every morning. A quiet and stubborn work that, in 2022, was rewarded with the highest recognition: first place in the Cheese category at the Sardinia Food Awards, the competition that celebrates Sardinian agri-food excellence.
"I remember him happy and proud of the results of his great work as president," said Bastianino Piredda, former dairy consultant for the Tertenia facility. He had been retired from the position for some time (his successor is Nicola Depau), after several consecutive terms. "He had a profound knowledge of the sector and had succeeded in restoring the Cooperative's operations to a balanced state," said Mayor Giulio Murgia in his farewell remarks.
