Interview Roberto Catelli

Tomato News had the pleasure of interviewing Roberto Catelli, President of CFT, on his career and legacy, innovation and growth.

Legacy and Transformation 

1. How would you summarize the history of the company, from its creation by your father in 1945, until its acquisition by ATS in 2021?

Our story began in 1945, when my father, Camillo Catelli, just after the end of the war, decided to found a small workshop in the heart of Parma. In a difficult period, when everything had to be rebuilt, he saw an opportunity: to create solutions for a food industry that was just emerging and would soon play a vital role in rebuilding the country.

With ingenuity, determination, and immense passion, he started designing and building machines for food processing — initially for sugar, and soon after for tomatoes, which would go on to become the very symbol of our company.

From that small workshop began an extraordinary journey. In the 1950s and 1960s, with innovations such as the Anteo evaporator, Rossi & Catelli revolutionized tomato processing and forged historic partnerships with companies like Heinz and Parmalat, bringing Italian technology to the world.

In the following decades, the company grew steadily, becoming a global reference point in food processing and expanding its expertise into new sectors such as dairy, fruit, and packaging.

In 2005, with the creation of CFT Group (Catelli Food Technology), we brought together under one organization historic brands such as Manzini and Comaco, along with companies like Raytec Vision — later joined by Co.Mac and SIAPI — while keeping our spirit of innovation alive. Each of these companies enriched our know-how and broadened CFT’s technological portfolio.

Finally, in 2021, joining the ATS Corporation marked a new milestone in our journey — a step that consolidated our international presence and strengthened our capacity to innovate, while never losing the values that have guided us for eighty years: a passion for engineering, trust in people, and the pioneering spirit that my father passed on to us.

2. What was the most challenging aspect of inheriting a company defined by the legacy of your father and how did you balance Camillo Catelli’s founding legacy with your own vision for the company?

Taking over the leadership of a company founded by my father was, above all, an act of great responsibility. My father was not only a brilliant entrepreneur but also a visionary — a man capable of transforming a small workshop into an industrial group recognized worldwide.

The greatest challenge was to keep his legacy alive — a legacy built on passion, expertise, and trust — while at the same time guiding the company toward the future.

I sought to combine his artisanal, human, and hands-on approach with a broader, more global vision focused on digitalization and sustainability.

His most important lesson was simple yet powerful: “Without people, you can go nowhere.”

With that same spirit, I have worked to build a corporate culture founded on relationships, collaboration, and shared innovation.

3. How did you successfully integrate major acquired brands, such as Manzini and Comaco in 2005 Raytec in 2007, under the CFT umbrella without losing their unique engineering specializations?

The integration of historic brands such as Manzini and Comaco, and companies like Raytec Vision, was guided by a clear principle: to unite strengths without erasing identities.

Each of these companies brought with it an invaluable wealth of technical and human expertise. The goal was not to standardize, but to create a group capable of enhancing the individual excellence of each one.

We built synergies across competencies while preserving the centers of know-how and specializations that made these brands unique — packaging, optical sorting, and the processing of tomatoes, fruit, and dairy.

In this way, CFT Group has become an ecosystem of complementary technologies, where diversity itself has been the key to strength.

4. What did the acquisition by ATS bring to the company? What was the primary business driver, and how did it signal the company’s intention to expand?

The acquisition by ATS Corporation in 2021 marked a new phase in our evolution. ATS brought us new managerial expertise and operational methodologies, particularly through its ABM – ATS Business Model, which promotes the continuous improvement of processes by engaging everyone in the company.

From a strategic standpoint, this operation had a dual objective:

• to strengthen our global growth capacity by integrating into a structured international network;
• and at the same time, to consolidate our technological leadership in the Food & Beverage sector by combining our experience with the organizational and financial strength of a major Canadian industrial group.

It was the natural continuation of the path begun by my father: blending tradition and innovation to face the challenges of the future with confidence.

5. How do you define the success of your time as President?

For me, success is not measured solely by financial results or by the number of plants installed around the world.

True success lies in having preserved CFT’s identity in a constantly evolving environment, while maintaining the trust of our customers and the sense of belonging among our people.

I am proud to have led the company through a complex phase — one of mergers, international expansion, and later integration into ATS — without ever losing our identity.

If today CFT is recognized as a global leader in the tomato sector and a key reference point in Food & Beverage, I believe it is thanks to this balance between our roots and our vision for the future.

6. When you look back, which strategic decision or product launch during your time as President do you consider your most significant contribution to the industry’s advancement?

Looking back, I believe two decisions clearly represent the contribution of these past years:

• On one hand, the investment in sustainable innovation, with the introduction of technologies such as Apollo and now Art3mis Longrun MVR™, which reduce steam consumption — and therefore CO₂ emissions — to almost zero;
• On the other hand, the digital transformation of processes, culminating in the Digital Tomato™ project, a software platform that enables real-time monitoring of plant performance and optimization of production.

These innovations demonstrate that even in a long-established sector like ours, it is possible to keep innovating — combining industrial efficiency with environmental responsibility.

Innovation

1. Which single innovation had the most lasting impact on global tomato standards? What was CFT’s role in this?

The technology that has probably had the most lasting impact on global tomato processing standards is that of evaporators, with particular mention of MVR (Mechanical Vapour Recompression) technology. In our case, CFT has been among the pioneers: thanks to the know-how inherited from the original brand (Rossi & Catelli) — which as early as 1957 patented a groundbreaking evaporator for tomato concentration — we have, over time, developed solutions that today serve as a global benchmark.

In practical terms, these technologies have made it possible to:

• Drastically reduce steam consumption and the overall energy impact of tomato processing lines.
• Better preserve the product’s organoleptic properties through shorter residence times and minimal temperature differentials.
• Help customers worldwide increase productivity while maintaining exceptional quality in concentrate, puree, and peeled tomatoes — setting new operational standards.

Each of our evaporators has marked a true turning point for the market, raising the benchmark for what can be considered high-quality processed tomato and positioning CFT as a leader and technical reference point for the entire industry.

2. How do CFT’s new evaporators (like ART3MIS) beat the competition on Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) and product quality?

When we talk about our new evaporators — particularly the ART3MIS Longrun MVR™ series — the competitive advantage goes far beyond energy savings: it concerns the entire Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) and the quality of the final product.

ART3MIS represents the most advanced stage of our research: it consumes almost no steam, can operate continuously for up to 90 days, and, thanks to MVR technology, drastically reduces energy costs. With 99% of its energy needs covered by electricity, it makes a tangible contribution to reducing CO₂ emissions, while also helping producers avoid the burden of the carbon tax.

The product’s residence time inside the system is minimal, which ensures superior quality, preserving color, flavor, and organoleptic characteristics.

In short, this is not just about efficiency — ART3MIS is a solution that lowers costs throughout the entire lifecycle, boosts productivity, and reduces operational risks. It is this integrated approach — sustainable, high-performing, and reliable — that truly makes CFT unique in the market today.

3. How does CFT leverage the Digital Tomato™ platform and its global service network to differentiate itself from competitors?

Digital Tomato™ currently represents the peak of our contribution to the digital transformation of the tomato processing industry.

Its goal is to collect and analyze production data in real time — temperature, flow rates, Brix levels, and consumption — to optimize yield, reduce downtime, and shift from reactive to predictive maintenance. The first customers who have implemented it were highly satisfied with the depth of its analysis and, consequently, with the improvements and optimization opportunities it offers for their plants.

As for our customer service, in recent years we have made significant investments to expand our global support network, now active in over 140 countries, and to continuously increase our responsiveness. What truly sets us apart is the quality of our relationship with clients and our experience in supporting them effectively.

In summary, we combine technology, data, and service to deliver not just a machine, but a system that performs better, lasts longer, and operates with fewer risks — and this is what truly distinguishes CFT from its competitors.

4. How does CFT define its unique value proposition to potential clients, and what is the strategic focus for winning new market share against direct rivals?

Our value proposition is to design innovative equipment for the processing and packaging of food and beverages, addressing the challenge of quality through the integration of superior technologies with easily measurable performance.

Strategically, to gain new market share over direct competitors, we focus on:

• Segments where high quality and sustainability are fundamental factors;
• Integrated digital solutions (such as Digital Tomato™) that many competitors do not yet offer comprehensively;
• Close cooperation with clients from the earliest design phases;
• Supporting the growth of the companies that rely on us, building long-term relationships that often evolve into technological partnerships.

In summary, our value proposition is built on innovation, customization, relationships, and service — a combination that truly sets us apart and one we aim to scale even further.

5. Where do you see the next innovations for tomatoes?

The future of tomato processing will be electric, digital, and sustainable.

These areas form our innovation roadmap for the tomato sector:

• Electrification and decarbonization of processes: We will continue to see a rapid shift away from traditional steam (generated from fossil fuels) toward electric solutions, heat recovery systems, mechanical compression technologies (such as MVR), and increasingly low-carbon designs.
• Performance monitoring, data analysis, and AI: The concept of the “stand-alone machine” is now obsolete. Today — and even more so in the future — every line is connected, data is continuously analyzed, and used for constant optimization. With platforms like Digital Tomato™, we already do this, but the next step will be the broader application of artificial intelligence.
• Greater customization and higher quality: As consumers evolve, demand changes. For us, this means developing lines capable of processing more delicate raw materials, with technologies that preserve color, flavor, and product integrity. In this field too, our experience gives us a clear competitive advantage.

Diversification and Growth

1. CFT has significantly diversified… Was this diversification proactive or reactive?

CFT’s diversification has always been a proactive journey, driven by a long-term vision.

Over the years, we chose to expand our expertise and markets not out of necessity, but to anticipate the evolution of the food industry and offer our customers comprehensive solutions.

We have combined know-how, research, and engineering capability to build a group capable of covering the entire food & beverage value chain — from primary processing to packaging, including digital and after-sales services.

In other words, we didn’t follow change — we led it, remaining true to our commitment to innovation and quality.

2. Beyond core markets, what are CFT’s current priority growth regions, and why?

It’s difficult to single out just one strategic area, because CFT thinks globally.

Today, thanks to being part of the ATS Group, we have the opportunity to strengthen our presence in North America, where there are significant prospects not only in food & beverage processing, but also in related sectors where our technologies can be applied.

At the same time, we continue to grow worldwide, adapting our strategies and solutions to the specific characteristics of each market.

Our goal is to be present wherever there is a need for innovation, quality, and the desire to build strong partnerships.

3. How is the competitive environment between Italy’s processing equipment leaders today different from a decade ago, especially now that CFT is backed by ATS?

Today’s market is more competitive, faster, and more global than it was ten years ago.

Being part of ATS has made us stronger and more structured, allowing us to approach the market with renewed strength while maintaining the flexibility and creativity that are the hallmarks of Made in Italy.

The landscape of Italian competitors remains rich and dynamic — and that is a value in itself: internal competition drives innovation, strengthens the entire sector, and enhances our country’s reputation worldwide.