EN Official Journal of the European Union C 247/12

Publication of an application pursuant to Article 6(2) of Council Regulation (EC) No 510/2006 on the protection of geographical indications and designations of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs

2010/C 247/06

This publication confers the right to object to the application pursuant to Article 7 of Council Regulation (EC) No 510/2006 (1). Statements of objection must reach the Commission within six months from the date of this publication.

SINGLE DOCUMENT

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 510/2006

‘SAUCISSON DE L’ARDÈCHE’

EC No: FR-PGI-0005-0596-10.04.2007

PGI ( X ) PDO ( )

1. Name:

‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’

2. Member State or third country:

France

3. Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff:

3.1. Type of product:

Class 1.2. Meat products (cooked, salted, smoked, etc.)

3.2. Description of product to which the name in (1) applies:

General description

‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’ is made using fresh meat and hard pork fat, which are minced and placed in a natural pork casing. It is heat-treated then dried according to a specific age-old recipe, combining matured meat with ‘standard-weight pig’ meat.

‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’ comes in the form of various products (‘saucisse sèche’, ‘chaudin’, ‘rosette’, ‘jésus’) using a single recipe and casings taken from all parts of the pig’s intestine (small intestine, cæcum, upper and dorsal lumbar colon, rectum and anal canal). These casings often give their name to the particular type of sausage.

The shape and dimensions of these products vary according to the type and size of the natural casing used, to the size of meat grain, and to the minimum drying period. The minimum drying period depends in turn on the product’s weight and on the diameter and texture of the casing which, for the same weight, is likely to vary.

Different forms of ‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’

‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’ comes in different shapes, weights and diameters, depending on the natural casing used, which often gives the sausage its name.

‘Saucisse sèche’

The dry weight of this sausage is 200 g or more. Its size is a function of the product’s low cross-section. The final salt content may vary. The casing used is from the pig’s small intestine and is 30 mm or more in diameter. The sausage’s length depends on whether it is straight or curved or comes in several rotations (hanging or coiled). The casing forms a natural, bound wrapping.

‘Petit chaudin’

The weight of this dry sausage varies from around 200 g to 600 g. The sausage mix is fairly lean. The mix is placed in a defatted casing taken from the upper or dorsal lumbar part of the colon and closed at both ends using twine. This natural wrapping can be tied by hand. The taste of the casing enhances the flavour of the final product.

‘Chaudin’

The weight of this sausage varies from around 600 g to 2 kg. It is long and can be straight or more or less wide depending on the diameter of the casing. It has a slightly higher salt content. The natural wrapping is bound using twine and can be tied by hand or placed in a net.

‘Gros chaudin’

Its weight is greater than 2 kg. The mix — preformed or otherwise — is placed in its casing taken from the large intestine, defatted naturally, peeled and in some cases trimmed. Strips of large intestine may be used. It is hung up or laid out flat to dry, which alters its appearance. Its flavour is slightly acidic as a result of having matured over a long period.

‘Rosette’

This is a large, dry sausage with a dry weight of over 1 kg and a length of 40 cm or more. Its cross-section is conical-shaped and bulbous at its end.

It bears the name of its casing, which is truncated and the broad tip of which contains the ‘rosette’ (anal canal). The thickness of the sausage slows down the drying process considerably, lending it a distinctive taste on account of the different rate at which it matures. The mix is placed in a natural rosette casing.

‘Jésus’

This large, dry sausage — ‘swaddled’ and ‘watched over’ like a child appearing at the family table at the exact time of year when the baby Jesus, God of the Christians, was born — is traditionally known as ‘Jésus’. It is a bulbous sausage, ovoid-shaped like its casing, the sac or cæcum, of variable diameter and weighing more than 400 g. It is born out of the rural traditions of domestic cooked meat preparation or charcuterie. Its mix is placed in a casing taken from the intestinal ‘sac’ or cæcum. Its flavour is slightly acidic as a result of having matured over a long period owing to the thickness of the casing.

Producers can add their own name to their particular form of the sausage.

Drying and curing

The products are cured by being placed in conditions where the temperature and humidity levels are carefully monitored and kept constant, with a renewed air supply to allow them to mature and dry.

The settings vary according to the producer’s equipment and know-how and the desired result. Drying is quicker during the first week, the relative humidity level is around 75 %, slowing to between around 80 % and 85 %.

The natural mould, sown naturally or by immersion, develops during this stage and helps slow down or regulate the drying of the sausage by maintaining a slight level of humidity on the surface of the casing. This reduces the risk of hardening and helps the sausage to dry.

The minimum drying period is fixed according to the product’s weight and, above all, the diameter and texture of the casing which, for the same weight, determine how long it takes for the product to dry.

The product, which has now been stabilised, can then be brushed (in order to remove the surface mould), dusted and packaged.

Summary table

The characteristics of each product are set out in the table below:

Name of product Casing Chopping: minimum grain size (mm) Weight of the dry sausage (g) Diameter of casing (mm) Length of casing (cm) Minimum heat treatment period (hours) Minimum drying period (days) ‘Saucisse sèche’ Small intestine 6 200 to 500 30 to 45 — 36 17 > 500 > 45 — 36 21 ‘Petit chaudin’ Large intestine 6 200 to 350 45 to 55 25 to 35 36 18 350 to 600 55 to 70 30 to 40 36 21 ‘Chaudin’ 6 600 to 2 000 70 to 90 > 40 36 30 ‘Gros chaudin’ 8 > 2 000 > 75 > 40 60 40 ‘Jésus’ Cæcum 8 400 to 1 500 — 20 to 35 36 32 > 1 500 — > 35 60 63 ‘Rosette’ Anal canal 8 > 1 000 — > 40 60 56

Appearance of the product

The product in its various forms can be marketed either whole (bare or ringed, in a net or in a bag) with its natural mould or dusted, or sliced in the case of sausages weighing more than 1,2 kg.

Organoleptic characteristics

When the sausage is sliced it is a reddish, slightly dark colour, revealing fat, white spots and some spices. The separation between fat and lean is all the more marked if the sausage has been coarsely chopped.

The slightly salty and spicy flavours of the mix combine with the pronounced meaty taste, with a slightly acidic flavour if the casing is thick, since this slows down the rate at which the product matures.

These flavours are influenced by the pre-salting of the meat, which guarantees a perfect link between the lean and the fat and allows the product to be sliced smoothly, with a pleasant, melt-in-the-mouth texture.

Physical and chemical characteristics

The characteristics of the sausage once it is ready to be marketed must comply with the statutory values laid down for superior dry sausages.

Also, the aw of the dry product must not exceed 0,91.

3.3. Raw materials (for processed products only):

The raw ingredients (lean and fat) that make up ‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’ originate exclusively from (standard- or heavy-weight) pigs and from sow meat.

The mature meat comes from heavy-weight pigs and/or sow meat and may account for a maximum of 60 %. Meat from standard-weight pigs can also account for a maximum of 60 %.

All the meat is fresh and of EU origin (animals born, reared and slaughtered in the European Union).

(a) Pig meat

The meat must fulfil the minimum criteria below:

— for standard-weight pigs:

— hot carcass weight at slaughter is between 72 and 89 kg,

— the minimum age for slaughter is 172 days,

— the muscle ratio is between 53 % and 63 %,

— for heavy-weight pigs:

— hot carcass weight is greater than or equal to 90 kg,

— the average age for slaughter is 182 days,

— the muscle ratio is between 53 % and 63 %.

All pigs (standard- and heavy-weight) must also meet certain requirements:

— genetics:

— the pigs are the descendants of pigs from pig selection bodies or certified artificial insemination centres.

— In other cases, the ratio of standard-weight pigs that are sensitive to halothane is < 3 % and the animals are unaffected by the RN- allele (no occurrences).

Pieces that appear flawed (abscess, soft and oily fat, exudative meat, extraneous substances, fractures, depilation flaws, ripped or burnt rinds, blood spots or any type of bruising, etc.) are discarded. These flaws in appearance must be limited to 5 % of pieces showing one or more flaws.

(b) Sow meat

The meat must be firm, mature and coloured, which matches the requirement to use prime cuts only: ham, shoulder, loin, backfat and belly.

Exudative meat or meat with a strong red colour and fat which is not white or firm are discarded.

Pieces that appear flawed (abscess, soft and oily fat, exudative meat, extraneous substances, fractures, depilation flaws, ripped or burnt rinds, blood spots or any type of bruising, etc.) are discarded. These flaws in appearance must be limited to 5 % of pieces showing one or more flaws.

Finally, there must be a minimum of two weeks between the end of separation and loading.

3.4. Feed (for products of animal origin only):

All pigs (standard- and heavy-weight) must also meet the following feed conditions:

— a minimum of 60 % of the pigs’ feed consists of cereals and cereal-based products,

— it is forbidden to use artificial additives containing growth factor at any time during the animal’s life.

3.5. Specific steps in production that must take place in the identified geographical area:

All of the production steps, from pre-salting the meat to maturing the sausage (pre-salting, resting, chopping, stuffing, heat treatment, curing) must be carried out in the geographical area of the PGI as these steps lend the product its specific nature.

3.6. Specific rules concerning slicing, grating, packaging, etc.:

Not applicable.

3.7. Specific rules concerning labelling:

Name under which product is sold: ‘Saucisson de l’Ardèche’ with the addition of the corresponding form of the product, if any: ‘saucisse sèche’, ‘petit chaudin’, ‘chaudin’, ‘chaudin large’, ‘rosette’ or ‘jésus’, to which the producer can add its own name.

PGI logo

With the wording ‘Protected Geographical Indication’

4. Concise definition of the geographical area:

The geographical area is located in south-east France. It extends over 326 communes of the Ardèche département in the Rhône-Alpes region.

The geographical area includes the entire Ardèche département, except for the following communes: Orgnac l’aven, Labastide de Virac, Vagnas, Salavas, Sampzon, Grospierres, Bessas, Beaulieu, Saint-André-de-Cruzières, Saint-Sauveur-de-Cruzières, Berrias et Castelau, Banne, Saint Paul le jeune.

The geographical area includes only those communes with an age-old and continuing tradition of sausage-making. It corresponds to the old Vivarais province, which became the Ardèche département in 1790. Since then, the borders of the Ardèche département have shifted on several occasions. The communes of the Ardèche excluded from the geographical area only became part of the département at a much later stage. Climatically and culturally, they are closer to the Gard département and have no tradition of producing ‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’.

5. Link with the geographical area:

5.1. Specificity of the geographical area:

Human factors

The geographical area corresponds to the old Vivarais province, which later became the Ardèche département and was the cradle of the traditions, customs and know-how inherited by the Ardèche. For a long time the region was cut-off and difficult to reach, and it was this very isolation that allowed traditions involving the pig (‘the providential animal’), such as ritual slaughters by peasants at the start of winter, trade and markets, cooking, meals and festivals, to become firmly rooted in local culture and to endure to this day.

The techniques for drying and preserving sausage, practised by local peasants during the ritual slaughters, were later passed down by meat curers. To this day, there is a strong presence in the geographical area of small and medium-sized meat-curing firms, many of them centuries-old. Over the centuries and generations, they have passed down their history and know-how in a region where the geographical and climatic conditions were favourable for them.

Natural factors

The geographical area can be broken down into two types of environment. The ‘mountains’, with an average altitude of between 500 and 1 700 m, have a harsh climate. In the northern part heavy snowfall is not uncommon up to the end of April, while the climate becomes more temperate further south. The entire ‘mountainous’ region is swept by cold winds. On the ‘plateau, hills and plains’, the altitude ranges from 400 m to the plains. The temperate climate becomes Mediterranean towards the far south.

The ritual slaughters of early winter established sausage-drying practices in both parts of the region, despite their differences in altitude and climate. These practices are of a limited duration and are necessary for the product to reach full maturity.

5.2. Specificity of the product:

The specific nature of ‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’ is based on the age-old reputation of this product and of the cured meats of the Ardèche in general and on the specific know-how that guarantees the best expression of the product’s organoleptic qualities.

The know-how used to produce ‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’

‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’ in its various forms is derived form a single recipe.

The quality, shape and size of the product are linked to the casings used from different parts of the pig’s intestine, which often give the type of product its name. The size of the grain depends on the diameter of the sausage.

The minimum drying period also varies according to the diameter and weight of the product and the texture of the casing.

These quality criteria are all described in point 3.2 and summarised in the table on page 2.

In addition to the above items, the recipe is also influenced heavily by the following practices:

— the choice of only fresh meat that meets the criteria laid down in the product specifications,

— the pre-salting of meat: an age-old method still used in the Ardèche, enabling the proteins to be perfectly dissolved and thus the grains to cohere properly,

— using casings from all parts of the pig’s intestine, which, from the very beginning, have formed an integral part of the production of the sausage in its various forms,

— the practice of curing as of early winter in both parts of the region (mountains and plateau, hills and plains), which endures to this day.

All these practices combine to give ‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’ its organoleptic properties.

Organoleptic properties of the product

The slightly salty and spicy flavours of the mix combine with a strong meaty taste. If the casing is thick and fatty, it allows the product to mature at a slower rate and lends it a slightly acidic flavour.

These flavours are influenced by the pre-salting of the meat, which gives the product a supple, pleasant, melt-in-the-mouth texture and ensures that it slices smoothly.

Reputation of the product

Baptised a ‘gourmet’s paradise’ by Curnonsky (who also described the small village of Saint-Agrève as a ‘Mecca of charcuterie’), the Ardèche enjoys a strong tradition of pig-rearing dating back to the 16th century. This tradition has allowed the age-old practices for producing sausages (and cured meats in general) to be passed down and to endure to this day.

In the early 16th century, Olivier de Serre, a native of this region who came to be known as the ‘father of French agriculture’, described the ritual sacrifices of the pig, little changed since then, as ‘proof of a sound tradition of good food in the Ardèche’.

The techniques for preserving pork by salting and drying have been practised and mastered since the 16th century. In the words of Michel Carlat ‘the ritual slaughter is a festive event, no one takes pity on the hunted beast […] Used to hard work, the locals set about their task with a certain pleasure: those who gut and clean out the casings in icy water do not balk from it. […] In the kitchen, hams and sausages are hung under the mantelpiece. They dry and smoke for many weeks’. On Christmas Eve, according to Pierre Charrie, ‘… we feasted on a “jésus”, a large sausage produced during the ritual slaughter and kept for the occasion’. Still on the subject of the ‘jésus’, Nicole Pellet and Vincent Balaÿ add that ‘its taste is reputed, however, to be the same as the other sausages made from the same meat’.

According to Charles Forot, it first appeared on the market in the 17th century. Markets expanded between 1900 and 1939 and, according to Guy Dürrenmatt, helped make ‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’ well known.

With the growth of food tourism in the early 20th century, ‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’ was recognised as a local product and referred to in the inventory of France’s culinary heritage, published in 1995.

In ‘Le Génie de l’Ardèche’ (October 2007), Jean-Marc Gardès and Annie Sorrel play homage to the locals’ creativity with, among other things, a ‘renowned piece of charcuterie’ illustrated specifically by a ‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’.

Nowadays, ‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’ is known and recognised throughout France (article by Gault Millau in 1986, and several medals awarded at the ‘Concours général agricole’ (general agricultural fair) in Paris in 2008 and 2009) and in Europe (medals awarded by the German Agricultural Society (DLG)).

‘Voyage gourmand en Rhône-Alpes’ (published by Glénat in 2006) devoted an entire chapter to the Ardèche and its range of noble charcuterie, including ‘rosette’ and ‘chaudin’.

In July 1988 the business monthly l’Expansion ran as its headline ‘The fashionable saucisson de l’Ardèche’.

5.3. Causal link between the geographical area and the quality or characteristics of the product (for PDO) or a specific quality, the reputation or other characteristic of the product (for PGI):

The quality and reputation of ‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’ are closely linked to the region. It was in this mostly mountainous, isolated region with its harsh climate that the tradition of producing ‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’, a way to preserve pork, was developed. Until the early 20th century the pig was the sole source of meat for local families. Traditionally, the pig was slaughtered at Christmas, and the resulting meat and cured meat products would last throughout the particularly harsh winter.

Today, this age-old know-how can be found in the local meat-curing firms, which are keen to preserve these traditions and pass them down to future generations, e.g. the choice and quality of the meat used to produce ‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’; using casings from all parts of the pig’s intestine to produce various types of dry sausage; using saltpetre as the sole additive; pre-salting lean bits on the production site; heat-treatment and drying conditions adapted to the wide variety of dry sausage, and so on.

It was at the heart of this mountainous region, rich in history, tradition and know-how, that the reputation of ‘saucisson de l’Ardèche’ was founded. This reputation has been passed down through the ages: by Olivier de Serres, so-called father of French agriculture, in the 16th century in what was then his native province of Vivarais; by the famous local poet Charles Forot; by Curnonsky, who christened the Ardèche a ‘gourmet’s paradise’ and the small village of Saint Agrève a ‘Mecca for charcuterie’; and by Charles Albin Mazon, who paid tribute to the sausage and its origins in his 1890 work ‘Frivolous and serious travels around the Ardèche’, marvelling at the ‘ceilings lined with bacon, hock, trotters and strings of sausages’.

This reputation as a quality traditional product endures to this day. In the words of the authors of ‘Le Génie de l’Ardèche’: ‘on the Ardèche plateau — swept by a wind that lends itself to sausage-drying — numerous pork butchers carry on centuries-old know-how by offering quality local produce’.

Reference to publication of the specification:

(Article 5(7) of Regulation (EC) No 510/2006)

http://www.inao.gouv.fr/repository/editeur/pdf/CDCIGP/CDCSaucissonDeLArdeche.pdf

(1) OJ L 93, 31.3.2006, p. 12.