A rapid rise from humble beginnings
OUR STORY
A rapid rise from humble beginnings
In 1967, Sam Cuteri came to Melbourne from his home in Calabria, Italy, looking for a better life. He found it. After working in a small chicken processing company for a number of years and learning the trade, he was sure he could improve on the way it was done. So, with that objective in mind, Sam and his wife Maria started their own poultry processing operation. They called it La Ionica. From those humble beginnings, a great Australian company was born.
Good was never good enough for Sam when he started the company and it never will be for La Ionica. Our commitment to quality drives us to continually work to find better, more innovative ways of doing things, both on our farms and in our processing plants. It’s how we became the first company in Australia to introduce Air Chilled processing. And it’s why our chicken is the best you can buy.
A story of giving back to the community
La Ionica started as a family business with a close connection to the local community. Today, La Ionica’s connection to the community continues to grow as we strive to give back to the community through our charity organisation, Turosi Giving, and also with our support for local sporting clubs and our partnership with Melbourne Victory.
Turosi Giving
Turosi Giving was established in 2011 as a formal charity organisation on behalf of employees within the company. Since then it has grown to become a much bigger organisation and has supported many charities, both locally and overseas, with a special focus on children suffering from the burdens of sickness, poverty, disability and other misfortunes.
Melbourne Victory
La Ionica has been a major partner with Melbourne Victory since the inaugural A-League season in 2005/6, and we are proud to be part of a great club that shares our values of quality and healthy living. We also support a range of other sporting clubs at all levels, with a focus on helping up-and-coming local talent reach their full potential.