Close family ties, and a secret recipe, keep business going; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 12/24/16

Steve Twedt, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Close family ties, and a secret recipe, keep business going:

"While the special seasoning recipe is kept locked away, the reason for the durability of the business may be no secret, suggested Kelly Hunt, Pittsburgh district director for the Small Business Administration, which named Ricci’s “Family Owned Business of the Year” in 2010.

“The No. 1 thing I have found is that there has to be someone in the family in each generation that shares that passion, and not just the passion, but who has the skill set,” she said...

Since its founding in 1945, Ricci’s Italian Sausage has survived four moves, landing at its current location in 2014. What hasn’t changed is the seasoning recipe — a secret mix of pork, paprika and various spices that has been handed down from Ernest to Ernest since 1945...

The Ricci family will tell you their secret is that special seasoning mix used in their hand-mixed, preservative-free sausage — a creation of founder Ernest Sr. after he and wife Sylvia migrated from the Abruzzo region of Italy east of Rome. The recipe is known only to family members and the U.S. Department of Agriculture."