Publication of an application for registration pursuant to Article 6(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92 on the protection of geographical indications and designations of origin
Date: 2005-12-20
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Portugal, designation of origin, location of production, meat product, product quality

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Publication of an application for registration pursuant to Article 6(2) of Regulation (EEC) No
2081/92 on the protection of geographical indications and designations of origin

(2005/C 323/02)

This publication confers the right to object to the application pursuant to Articles 7 and 12d of the above-
mentioned Regulation. Any objection to this application must be submitted via the competent authority in
a Member State, in a WTO member country or in a third country recognized in accordance with Article
12(3) within a time limit of six months from the date of this publication. The arguments for publication
are set out below, in particular under 4.6, and are considered to justify the application within the meaning
of Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92.

SUMMARY

COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) No 2081/92

‘CHOURIÇA DE CARNE DE BARROSO — MONTALEGRE’

EC No: PT/00239/16.05.2002

PDO ( ) PGI ( X )

This summary has been drawn up for information purposes only. For full details, in particular the produ-
cers of the PDO or PGI concerned, please consult the complete version of the product specification obtain-
able at national level or from the European Commission (1).

1.

Responsible department in the Member State:

Name:

Instituto de Desenvolvimento Rural e Hidráulica

Address: Av. Afonso Costa, n.o 1949-002 Lisboa

Tel.:

Fax:

(00 351) 21 844 22 00

(00 351) 21 844 22 02

Email:

idrha@idrha.min-agricultura.pt

2.

Group:

2.1 Name: Cooperativa Agrícola dos Produtores de Batata para Semente de Montalegre, CRL

2.2 Address: Rua General Humberto Delgado 5470- 247 Montalegre, Portugal.

Tel.: (351) 276 512 253
Fax: (351) 276 512 528
Email: quadrimonte@iol.pt

2.3 Composition: producers/processors (X) other ( )

3.

Type of product:

Type 1.2 — Meat-based products

4.

Specification

(summary of requirements under Article 4(2)):

(1) European Commission, Directorate-General for Agriculture, Agricultural product quality policy, B-1049 Brussels.

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4.1 N a me :

‘Chouriça de carne de Barroso — Montalegre’

4.2 De scr i p ti on:

A smoked sausage, made from the pig meat and pig fat of the Bisaro breed or of cross-breeds that
must be 50 % Bisaro, stuffed into hog casings. The pig meat and fat are seasoned with salt, garlic, red
or white wine from the Trás-os-Montes region, powdered chilli pepper (regionally known as ‘pimento’)
and/or powdered red bell pepper (or ‘pimentão’). The sausage is shaped like a horseshoe, is between 25
and 35 cm in length and has a cylindrical section of approximately 3 cm in diameter. It varies from
red to brown in colour and is spotted, as the pieces of fat are visible. The casing is wrapped tightly
around the filling and is unbroken. The casing used is tied shut with two simple knots at each end,
using a single piece of cotton twine.

4.3 G e o g r a p h i ca l a r e a :

Due to the special production requirements of these sausages, their flavours, the expertise available
and the climatic conditions of the region, the geographical area for processing and packing is limited
to the municipality of Montalegre, in the Vila Real district. Taking into account the traditional animal
feed and existing agricultural production, the geographical area for processing and packing is naturally
limited to the municipalities of Boticas, Chaves and Montalegre, in the Vila Real district. The territory
consisting of these three municipalities is known and identified as ‘Barroso’.

4.4 Pr oof of or i g i n:

The farms, slaughterhouses and meat-cutting and preparation plants must be licensed, authorised by
the group of producers after the private control body has given its approval and located in the speci-
fied production or processing areas respectively. The entire production process, from the farm that
produces the raw materials to the place where the product is sold, is subject to a rigorous control
system ensuring the product is fully traceable. The pigs are reared in livestock farms possessing an
area compatible with traditional, semi-extensive farming systems, where it is possible to produce tradi-
tional animal feed. The certification mark on each sausage is numbered, ensuring full traceability to
the farm from which the product originated. It is possible to prove the origin of the product at any
point in the production chain by means of the serial number, which must be indicated on the certifi-
cation mark.

4.5 M e th od of p r odu c ti on:

Topside, loin, lean trimmings off the leg, and the meat attached to the spinal vertebrae are used. The
pig meat is cut into small pieces and seasoned with salt, red or white wine from the Trás-os-Montes
region, and garlic. It is marinated for up to 5 days at a temperature below 10 °C in a room with low
humidity, after which chilli pepper powder and red bell pepper powder are added. This mixture is
then stuffed into a hog casing (small intestine). After stuffing, the casing is cut to the desired size after
the ends have been knotted with cotton twine. The two ends are then tied with simple knots and the
sausage is bent into a horseshoe shape. The sausage is smoked over a low fire in a smoking room or
a traditional smokehouse for 10 to 15 days. The smoke is obtained through the direct combustion of
wood, primarily oak, from the region. It is placed on the market as a whole sausage and is always
pre-packed at the place of origin. Due to the product's characteristics and composition, it cannot be
cut or sliced. Special material is used for its packaging, which, when it comes into contact with the
product, is innocuous and inert. The product may be packed in a normal or controlled atmosphere or
in a vacuum. Packing can only be carried out in the geographical processing area so as to ensure
traceability and control and to prevent any change to the product's taste and microbiological charac-
teristics.

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4.6 L i nk:

Due to climatic, geographic and socio–economic conditions, and the diffícult links with the rest of the
country, the diet of the Barroso region was limited to local products, mainly bread, potatoes and
pork. References made to taxes on pigs and pork products in various municipal registers, including
that of Montalegre, prove that pig-breeding has been important in this area for a very long time. For
it to remain edible throughout the year, ways were discovered to preserve pig meat, and these quickly
became ancestral skills passed down from one generation to the next. The preparation of these
products is the result of, and is very dependent on, the region's cold and dry climate, which forces
every household to keep a fire burning at all times, thus providing unique conditions for smoking,
characterised by a light and gradual smoke supply. It was thus that the need to take advantage of and
preserve the pig meat provided by the traditional slaughter gave rise to sausages of various shapes,
different ingredients and different colours and flavours, but which were always an expression of the
local characteristics: the land and the people. In short, the relationship between this product and the
geographical area stems from the breed of (indigenous) animal, the local produce fed to these animals,
the knowledge to choose the correct pieces of pig meat, the smoking process using regional firewood
and the curing process conducted in a very cold and dry environment suitable for preserving the
product.

4.7 Inspe c ti on body :

Name:

Tradição e Qualidade — Associação Interprofissional para Produtos Agro-Alimentares de
Trás-os-Montes

Address: Av. 25 de Abril, 273 S/L P-5370 Mirandela

Tel.:

Fax:

(00 351) 278 261 410

(00 351) 278 261 410

Email:

tradicao-qualidade@clix.pt

Tradição e Qualidade has been recognised as complying with the requirements of Standard
45011:2001.

4.8 L a b e lli n g :

It is compulsory for the labelling to include the following: the wording ‘Chouriça de carne de Barroso
— Montalegre — Indicação Geográfica Protegida’ (Protected Geographical Indication), the Communi-
ty's own logo, the logo for Barroso-Montalegre, reproduced below, together with the words ‘Monta-
legre’ and ‘Chouriça de carne’. It must also include the certification mark, which must state the name
of the product, the control body and the serial number (numeric or alphanumeric code ensuring the
product's traceability).

4.9 N a ti ona l r e q u i r e me nt s: —