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c0lo [soylentnews.org] writes:

From the outside, Italy's Credem Bank looks just like any other high security operation.

And indeed, behind the barbed wire and electronic fence are piles of golden blocks. But they are not made of precious metal -- rather, they are ageing wheels of Parmesan cheese.

As I walk inside, I am hit by the pungent smell and then, by the size of the vaults.

Row after row, stacked up twenty shelves high, are 430,000 parmesan wheels. They're worth up to 190 million euros.

The wheels are stored here as part of a cash-for-cheese loan that started with Credem bank, but dates back to the Medici era.

Other relevant info:

1. Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese [wikipedia.org] - is named after the producing areas and European law classifies the name, as well as the translation "Parmesan", as a protected designation of origin. (therefore the bank's risk of over-production or price volatility is low)
2. the cheese mature for 2 years and, at the end, a cheese wheel weights about 38 kilos

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