For the production of Bresaola della Valtellina PGI, certified producers select and use the best bovine meat, a top-quality choice that makes it a unique product in the world and one of the Italian excellence products. Credit goes to the experience acquired over a centuries-old tradition, and to the safety guaranteed by the PGI Regulations.
Only top-category cuts are used for the production of Bresaola della Valtellina PGI. The selected cuts are highly valuable and tender, and they are only cut from the beef round of selected breeds of cattle – preferably freerange cattle fed with selected feeds – of 18 months to 4 years of age, as set forth in the Regulations (therefore excluding cow meat, which is dark and does not reach the required level of consistency).
It is a top-quality choice because all these factors – cattle breed and age, breeding system and feeds, choice of high value cuts of the beef round (such as topside without cup) – contribute to ensuring better meat, both in terms of organoleptic characteristics (e.g. for consistency, tenderness, taste, colour, leanness and absence of nerves), and of nutritional properties (e.g. for a lower fat content).
Producers joining the Consortium mainly use meat from European and South American farms, where breeding systems and supervision of all phases of the supply chain guarantee a raw material that meets the high quality standards required for the production of Bresaola della Valtellina PGI. The best bovine breeds are used, to obtain lean and high-consistency cuts, in accordance with the Regulations and the centuries-old tradition. Among European breeds, we favour Charolaise, Limousine, Blonde d’Aquitaine and Garonnesi. Among Italian breeds, the Piemontese.
Pure zebu breeds come from South America. Among them, the Zebu Nellore is outstanding for its very lean meat. It is the most common breed in the large Brazilian farms. Then, there are the Zebu Guzerat and the Brahman, accounting for a minimum part of South American cattle.
PGI is the guarantee of a product that is controlled and verified throgouth its processing. During the processing of Bresaola della Valtellina PGI, numerous checks are performed on the various steps of the supply chain to guarantee consumers a safe and top-quality product. Compliance with the Production Regulations is verified by a third-party inspection body (CSQA Certificazioni), authorized by the Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies. Therefore, when we taste Bresaola della Valtellina PGI, we know that it is the result of the best choice of raw materials, guaranteed by full traceability of the production chain and a processing protocol approved by the supervisory authority. Its implementation is verified by a third-party certification body.
While only the 5 best muscle cuts of beef round can be used for the production of Bresaola della Valtellina PGI, the most widely used is topside without cup.
It is the most valuable cut, comprising the part of the fesa without the adductor muscle.
Corresponds to the posteromedial section, including the internal rectus muscle, the adductor muscle and the semimembranosus muscle.
Corresponds to the posterolateral section, i.e. the biceps femoris muscle.
Corresponds to the posterolateral portion of the leg muscles, i.e. the semitendinous muscle.
It is the front of the leg, composed of the anterior rectus muscle and the vastus lateralis, vastus medialis and vastus intermedius muscles.