EN Official Journal of the European Union C 304/15

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

2011/C 304/10

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

‘NOSTRANO VALTROMPIA’

EC No: IT-PDO-0005-0823-22.09.2010

PGI ( ) PDO ( X )

1. Name:

‘Nostrano Valtrompia’

2. Member State or third country:

Italy

3. Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff:

3.1. Type of product:

Class 1.3. Cheeses

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

‘Nostrano Valtrompia’ PDO cheese is a semi-fat, extra-hard cheese produced throughout the year from raw milk with added saffron. When it is released for consumption, the characteristics of the product are as follows: cylindrical with an almost flat heel; diameter between 30 cm and 45 cm and heel varying in height between 8 cm and 12 cm; weight of the wheel varying between 8 kg and 18 kg; hard rind, varying in colour from yellow-brown to reddish; the flesh of the cheese is hard but not particularly crumbly, and may have uniformly distributed medium/fine eyes; the flavour and aroma of the cheese are full and intense, without perceptible acid notes at minimum ripeness but with barely accentuated bitter notes when it is very ripe; the flesh of the cheese is straw yellow, tending to yellow-green. The fat content of the cheese is between 18 % and 28 % by mass, while expressed as a percentage of dry matter it is between 27,5 % and 42 %; the maximum moisture content is 36 % of the cheese by mass; the minimum ripening period is 12 months.

3.3. Raw materials (for processed products only):

The milk comes from the production area and at least 90 % is from cows of the brown (bruna) breed entered in the herd book. The remaining 10 % may come from other breeds or from crossbreeds. Saffron is added at quantities of between 0,05 g and 0,2 g per 100 kg of milk.

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

At least 75 % of the total dry matter in the animal's diet is made up of grass or hay from mixed-grass meadows, whereas cereal and pulse concentrates and by-products of cereal and pulse processing, salt licks and mineral or vitamin complexes as supplements account for no more than 25 % of the dry matter in the animal's diet.

At least 50 % of the animals' daily dietary requirements expressed in terms of dry matter must consist of grass and/or hay from mixed-grass meadows, including wild meadow plants such as Dactylis glomerata, Festuca ovina, Poa annua, Phleum pratense and Trifolium montanum, from the geographical area identified in point 4.

Depending on weather conditions, between June and September animals are fed on lowland or mountain pastures for at least 60 days. The cattle are not fed on maize silage.

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

The milk must be produced and processed and the cheeses ripened, scraped and oiled in the defined geographical area in line with the traditional production methods and timescales.

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

‘Nostrano Valtrompia’ cheese is sold in whole wheels and/or cut into pieces. The cheese may be cut into pieces of varying weights; however, the pieces must include part of the heel attesting to the origin of the cheese. The pieces may be pre-packaged, either in vacuum packs or in a modified atmosphere.

3.7. Specific rules concerning labelling:

‘Nostrano Valtrompia’ PDO cheese is marketed in whole wheels and/or cut into pieces and is released for consumption bearing its identifying logo, including the words ‘Nostrano Valtrompia’ repeated several times and the identification number of the producer, which are printed on the heel in the mould. A paper disc may be affixed to one of the faces of the cheese bearing the identifying logo, including the words ‘Nostrano Valtrompia DOP’, alongside the EU logo.

4. Concise definition of the geographical area:

The production and ripening area of ‘Nostrano Valtrompia’ PDO cheese comprises the municipalities of the province of Brescia within the Trompia Valley (Valle Trompia), namely Bovegno, Bovezzo, Brione, Caino, Collio, Concesio, Irma, Gardone Val Trompia, Lodrino, Lumezzane, Marcheno, Marmentino, Nave, Pezzaze, Polaveno, Sarezzo, Tavernole sul Mella, Villa Carcina and the mountainous area of the municipality of Gussago comprising the villages of Quarone and Civine.

5. Link with the geographical area:

5.1. Specificity of the geographical area:

‘Nostrano Valtrompia’ PDO cheese is produced in a geographical environment characterised by steep slopes, narrow valley-floor meadows and hilly mountain pastures where wild meadow plants such as Dactylis glomerata, Festuca ovina, Poa annua, Phleum pratense, Trifolium montanum, etc. grow. These plants, which are eaten fresh by the animals (mainly of the brown (bruna) breed) while they are at pasture during summer mountain grazing or as hay during the rest of the year, contribute to the organoleptic characteristics of the milk, since their aromatic qualities are transmitted directly to the milk. The same geographical factors have led to the continuation of a productive context mainly characterised by small individual holdings that produce milk and process cheese, which is then left to mature. In the Trompia Valley, the role of the livestock farmer who also produces and ripens cheese is thus perpetuated, guaranteeing a strong identity characterised by short-chain production. The family dimension of the business ensures the maintenance of the multiplicity of traditional practices in the valley, such as producers' ability to manufacture their own tools for making cheese or oiling the wheels, and it is equally instrumental to the oral transmission of knowledge.

5.2. Specificity of the product:

‘Nostrano Valtrompia’ PDO cheese has low moisture and fat content, which contributes to its hard, although not particularly crumbly, consistency. The cheese flavour has no perceptible acid notes, which is typical of the fermentation balance of the indigenous microflora of raw milk. The flesh of the cheese is straw yellow, partly as a result of the use of saffron, tending to yellow-green, while the rind is hard and varies in colour from yellow-brown to reddish, thanks to the oiling of the rind protecting the cheese from an early, excessive loss of moisture.

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 irregular, uneven nature of the land has led to both the enforced fragmentation of production and a disincentive to industrial milk processing, causing the consolidation, over time, of methods of farm organisation where the fulcrum of the system is the small livestock holding that processes its own milk. Indeed, the complex topography, with mountain pastures situated more than 1 800 m above sea level, and the transport difficulties in the production area have always influenced the way in which the milk is collected and produced, with these steps even now being carried out in buckets/tanks and basins on holdings that do their own processing. The combination of the factors linked to the distinctiveness of the geographical area and traditional processing techniques give the milk its specific character and thus contribute to the characteristics of ‘Nostrano Valtrompia’. Specifically, the spontaneous rising of the cream allows a significant reduction in the fat content of the milk used for cheese-making and at the same time contributes to the development in the milk of indigenous microflora that is important for the ripening processes and for the taste characteristics of the cheese. The combined action of the indigenous microflora present in the raw milk in the heating vat allows the proper acidification of the curd and, during ripening, helps to produce a significant quantity of peptides and free amino acids that influence the taste and flavour of the cheese by making it free of acid notes when tasted.

During the ripening period of ‘Nostrano Valtrompia’ PDO cheese, producers still follow the traditional practice of oiling the cheese wheel to avoid a situation whereby reaching the maximum moisture content (36 %) too soon negatively effects enzyme activity, thus compromising the characteristics of intense taste.

What is more, the long-standing practice of adding saffron to the milk or to the mix of whey and curd makes it possible to improve the appearance of the flesh of the cheese which, otherwise, owing to factors linked to the partial skimming of the milk and the cattle’s diet, would be too green.

In the Trompia Valley, the livestock farmer who also produces and ripens cheese is the main player. In other words, a single type of operator is responsible for a large part of the production chain. In this context, use is made of shared techniques passed on from father to son. The addition of saffron, the use of copper heating vats and utensils that are often made by the cheese-makers themselves, such as the whisk, mixer and skimmer, and the use of linseed oil to oil the cheese wheels during ripening are evidence of the distinctive and traditional method of milk processing that make it possible to obtain ‘Nostrano Valtrompia’, a cheese that is the expression of the human and agricultural heritage of the production area.

Reference to publication of the specification:

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

The full text of the product specification is available:

at http://www.politicheagricole.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeBLOB.php/L/IT/IDPagina/3335

or

by going directly to the homepage of the Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policy (http://www.politicheagricole.it) and clicking on ‘Qualità e sicurezza’ (in the top right-hand corner of the screen) and finally on ‘Disciplinari di Produzione all'esame dell'UE’.

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