In 1954, a pharmacist from Tuscany opens a laboratory in Milan. He wanted to produce vitamin-based food supplements. Seventy years later, his company employs over 200 people, operates two factories on Lake Como, supplies UAE Team Emirates and Lidl-Trek with competition nutrition and generates an annual turnover of 97 million euros. Enervit is listed on the Milan Stock Exchange, has borne the name since 1976 and is still managed by the Sorbini family.

1954: A pharmacist and a laboratory

Paolo Sorbini came from a family of pharmacists in Montepulciano, south of Siena. In 1954, he founded Also Laboratori in Milan at Via Vitruvio 39 - a small laboratory for food supplements. Sorbini focused on vitamin supplements at a time when sport and nutritional science hardly went hand in hand.

In 1963, he began working with German companies on plant extracts. The product range grew. In 1976, Sorbini gave his company a new name: Enervit, made up of energia and vita. The name was to become the program.

Equipe Enervit and the hour record

Also in 1976, Sorbini founded Equipe Enervit - a scientific team led by Prof. Enrico Arcelli, a sports physiologist at the University of Milan. The biggest mission came in 1984: Francesco Moser's hour record in Mexico City. Over 51 kilometers in one hour, at an altitude of 2,240 meters.

Arcelli was responsible for the nutrition strategy, Aldo Sassi for the training, Dottore Ferrario developed one of the first heart rate monitor prototypes, Antonio Dal Monte took care of the aerodynamics. Nutrition was not a marginal issue in this record. It was part of an integrated performance system.

Thirty years of the Giro

From 1973 to 2003, Enervit operated the Giroclinica - a mobile laboratory that accompanied the Giro d'Italia. Thirty editions, over 100,000 kilometers on the road, more than 10,000 laboratory tests on riders during the race.

The result was not a marketing tool. It was thirty years of field data from the peloton. Blood values, hydration status, energy consumption under race conditions. This knowledge flowed directly into product development.

Two WorldTour teams

Enervit has been the official nutrition partner of UAE Team Emirates and Lidl-Trek since 2020. The nutritionist Gorka Prieto-Bellver works directly with the Enervit laboratories and develops products that are tested and adapted during the race.

The collaboration resulted in the C2:1PRO product line. Tadej Pogacar's 2024 Giro-Tour double was contested with Enervit products. Depending on the stage profile, riders consume between 60 and 120 grams of carbohydrates per hour - less on flat terrain and more in the high mountains.

C2:1PRO: From the peloton to the shelf

The C2:1PRO line uses a 2:1 ratio of glucose to fructose. The principle: two transport routes in the intestine instead of one, higher absorption rates, fewer stomach problems with high carbohydrate quantities.

The range includes several formats. The Carbo Gel is isotonic, 60 ml in size and requires no additional water - the mango variant is Pogacar's choice for Grand Tours. There is also Isocarb as a drink mix, Carbo Bar, Carbo Jelly and Carbo Chews. Each product is the result of feedback from the WorldTour teams.

Two factories on Lake Como

Enervit produces at two locations. The original factory is located in Zelbio, 1,000 meters above sea level on Pian del Tivano above Lake Como, and has been in operation since 1973. In 2015, a second plant was added in Erba, which is automated and designed for gluten-free and palm oil-free production.

All production takes place in-house. Today, Enervit is managed by the second generation of Sorbini: Alberto as Chairman of the Board of Directors, Giuseppe "Pino" as Managing Director, Maurizia in the background.

Why we carry Enervit

At Kilometro, we carry Enervit because seventy years of experience in sports nutrition are not interchangeable. The combination of our own laboratory, our own production and direct WorldTour development is rare. What Pogacar eats at the Giro is produced in the same factories as the gel you order from our store.

Enervit is not the most minimalist brand in our range. But it is one where seven decades of research and fieldwork go into every product. From the pharmacy in Milan to Lake Como - that's a long way for a gel.