CINTA SENESE

The Cinta senese is an Italian pig breed. The denomination Cinta senese – reserved exclusively for pork from animals born, raised and slaughtered in Tuscany according to tradition-get the PDO (protected designation of origin) mark. The Consortium for the Protection of Cinta Senese has published a specification on breeding characteristics.[2]

It is a particularly ancient hardy breed-taking its name from its range area, the hills of Siena-and probably already bred in Roman times. The earliest reliable records of its presence date back to the late Middle Ages when Ambrogio Lorenzetti depicted the species in his own 1338 fresco, preserved in Siena’s Palazzo comunale. The breed was probably also known outside Tuscany; it was also represented in other paintings, for example in the Chapel of the Annunciation in the Church of San Sebastiano in Venice, in a pictorial work of Faenza execution, dated 1510.

The breed is native to the Montagnola Senese, a wooded area north of Siena. Later the breed spread north to Mugello and Valdarno and south to Maremma. Pigs are raised either on full or semi-wild pasture with the use of simple pigsties and dietary supplementation.

In the 1940s, the Cinta Senese was considered the most important pig breed in Tuscany. August 7, 1997 and March 6, 2001 are two important dates in the recent history of the pig population belonging to the Cinta senese genetic type. The first date is that of the Decree by which the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry established a special section of the Swine Herd Book to safeguard the breed. On the second date, the Pig Species Registry was established by the same Ministry by Ministerial Decree 20871 dated 6.3.2001 following the Law of August 3, 1999 no. 280. This registry, managed by the National Pig Breeders Association, is the tool for the conservation and preservation of pig breeds.

In 1986, 81 sows and 3 boars had been surveyed in the Tuscany region. This is eloquent data about the serious situation of extinction risk the breed was in. The reality of the Cinta Senese represents for the Italian pig sector the most important example of recovery intervention. The number of farms over the years has been increasing significantly until it peaked in 2007 with 210 farms.

Approximately 4,000 animals are raised each year within the PDO member farms. The consistency achieved and the high ratio of boars to sows are particularly positive aspects for the purpose of preserving the breed. However, further expansion also appears necessary to cope with a continuous increase in demands for the product in the domestic and international markets. Cinta senese breeders have been organized since the year 2000 into the Consorzio di Tutela della Cinta senese (www.cintasenesedop.it) and were granted Protected Designation of Origin status in March 2012: this is reserved exclusively for pork from animals born, raised and slaughtered in Tuscany.

Because it is not very prolific, it went into extinction after the introduction of foreign breeds in the 1960s-1970s and was saved when there were now only a little more than 150 specimens.

First mating occurs between 12 and 18 months of age. The average sow has three pregnancies every two years: the average number of births (purebred) per farrowing is 6.8 piglets. They are weaned after 35-56 days.

It is a very hardy and hardy breed that does not require special care. The body is longilinear and slender, while the long limbs appear robust compared to the animal’s trunk. The skin and bristles are black, except for the presence of a continuous white band completely surrounding the trunk at shoulder height including the forelimbs. The transition between black and white can be gradual and not sharp. Black spots within the white band are also allowed.

The use is mainly food. In fact, Cinta senese meat has excellent organoleptic qualities. The fat is pinkish in color; the meat is also more intensely colored than other pigs. The special breeding and feeding conditions have positive effects on the flavor and succulence of the meat, which boasts better dietary qualities due to the higher concentration of unsaturated fatty acids, particularly of the Omega 3 series (which are associated with decreased blood fat) and Omega 6 (anti-thrombosis action). Compared with traditional lard from other breeds, lard is richer in oleic acid, which keeps cholesterol away, and polyunsaturated fatty acids. Fat with larger, water-rich cells is less firm and more fluid, therefore much more palatable; its better fluidity, due to greater unsaturation, allows in the resulting cured meats a more rapid diffusion of the flavors used for spicing, ensuring the product excellent aromatic characteristics.

The meats are used to make traditional Tuscan cured meats (Tuscan salami, especially Cinta Senese salami, sausages, prosciutto, buristo, spalla salata, pancetta, capocollo, finocchiona) and as fresh meat cooked on the grill (lombate). The abundant fat from the shoulders is used for the production of salted lard (from Wikipedia, Cinta Senese).