We often talk about awareness because having a perfect understanding of the impact of our work is essential for us. Having a butcher who has also been a farmer among our partners means knowing the entire supply chain and understanding how to treat animals properly to produce good, healthy, ethical, and sustainable artisanal cured meat.

We have set an entire business on certain values — animal welfare, respect for all meat and the rhythms of nature, zero waste — which we have acquired “in the field.” Without this direct and authentic experience, our project would not have the same identity.

A different approach to pork

Massi, our butcher, is the guardian and spokesman of all our principles. His stance on free-range farming, slaughtering at no less than 14 months, using meat without waste, and traditional processing methods has nothing predefined or planned at a desk. The rule he follows in his work comes to him from experience and awareness – as a farmer first and as a butcher later – of what is right and what is wrong. 

We established, for example, that in our farms there will never be more than ten pigs per hectare of land. We could increase the number of animals, the amount of meat, the products and the profits, but we don’t do that because we have seen with our own eyes the difference between an ethical and sustainable livestock farm and one that aims only for profit. 

As we have already said in our article about Casentino, Massi inherited his grandmother’s farm, where pigs were raised in a subsistence economy. Back in the day, the pig was a primary asset for the family, so important that it was even the subject of foreclosure. 

The foundation of today’s breeding of Grigio del Casentino® comes from here. Then the farms expanded and Massi dedicated himself full time to butchering, but the basic ideas – that pigs should live free, that all cuts of meat are a precious treasure, that waste is a sin – have remained the same. 

Knowing the animals and the farmers

Unlike intensive farms, which raise thousands and thousands of animals in facilities which are often located far away, we know the farmers and have total and direct control over the animals we raise.

The piglets are born from our sows and are entrusted to farmers we know and trust, whom we have carefully selected on the basis of the land available and their personal abilities.

We have strict rules for the feeding and lifestyle of our animals. No cages, sheds or drugs (except for the mandatory vaccines). Our pigs live free in the forests of Casentino, with all the space and time to follow their natural instincts.

Everything but the oink

Only those who have raised pigs and processed their meat can feel the issue of waste so pressing. The “factories” that work at the industrial level do not truly perceive what meat really is and treat it as a consumer good equal to any other. 

There is a complete lack of responsibility and respect. We grew up with a different mentality. For Casentino families, the pig was a treasure that one could not afford to waste. 

From the need to recover as much as possible, some of the most delicious artisanal cured meats were born. Today the need is no longer there, but the desire remains to use all the meat to make healthy and genuine products, with all the taste of tradition.

No surplus production

Still related to the issue of waste is the problem of unsold products. Many large companies produce meat and cured meats in quantities that exceed actual demand to fill supermarket shelves and stimulate new demand. 

We cannot – and do not want to – work this way. We produce as much as we need, never going into surplus because that would result in an incredible waste of raw material. Our products are made for mindful and conscious consumption, not for excessive use.

Authentic processing, as it was done in the old days

Each pig has different characteristics, and in our processing we want to enhance each cut. The butcher’s ability to assess which cured meat each part should become is invaluable. The goal is not to force production, but to bring out the best from each animal. 

Our chef customers can also ask us for cuts tailored to their dishes. Having skilled hands that work the meat to bring out the best also allows us to meet the most special needs. 

Our artisanal cured meats not only have the added benefit of being handmade from superior quality, healthy and wholesome raw material, but they also have the merit of representing a territory and an alternative production system, where the values of respect, responsibility and awareness still count. 

The healthiness of meat depends on two factors: the animals’ diet and the processing methods. And our products are doubly healthy. First, because the animals live in a semi-free range in the Casentino forests, where they feed on what nature provides.

Second, because we have banned chemicals from our processing. We use superior quality raw material, time, humidity and temperature, without allergens, preservatives, dyes, stabilizers, thickeners and other “junk,” as we call them.

Grigio del Casentino® pork is also ethical. Animal welfare is our priority. To ensure our pigs have a good life, we carry out a project that is the exact opposite of intensive farming. Our animals live free and have plenty of space – and time – to follow their instincts in their natural habitat.

But there’s more, because our farming is also ecologically sustainable. In fact, the very short supply chain and simple breeding methods, like those of our grandparents, guarantee an environmental impact that is not even remotely comparable to that of large-scale farms.

Many consumers, even those attentive to quality and animal welfare, do not realize how much the meat industry “weighs” on the environment. Precisely because this fact often goes unnoticed, and precisely because it is so important to us instead, we have decided to provide a detailed examination of it.

The numbers are the problem

The issue with intensive farming is that it is, indeed, intensive. There are so many animals, confined in confined spaces.

This, from an environmental perspective, causes at least three major problems:

1. The animals obviously cannot procure their food naturally. The ever-increasing demand for industrial livestock feed is the primary cause of deforestation and land clearance.
   Twenty percent of the world’s land is used for grazing and more than 40 percent of cultivated land is devoted to feed production. The immediate result is the loss of biodiversity, and the long-term result is the shortage of arable land for human use. Add to this the fact that forests, especially rainforests, absorb tons and tons of carbon every day, and the devastating environmental impact of intensive livestock farming is clear.
2. Many animals mean a lot of waste. Livestock manure contains ammonia, methane, nitrogen and nitrates. Let’s be clear: waste has always existed, even when our grandparents raised pigs here in Casentino, and they always will. The problem is the quantity.
   When the number of animals is small, the waste remains manageable at the local level, but when it’s tons and tons, the issue becomes much more complex. Currently, most livestock waste is sold as fertilizer. However, the soil does not always absorb the nitrogen compounds, which can transfer from the soil to surface water and groundwater, compromising their quality.
3. Greenhouse gas emissions and water consumption. Did you know that intensive farming pollutes more than all transportation combined? Intensive farming is the leading cause of greenhouse gasses, responsible for rising temperatures and climate change.
   As for water, no farming, not even the most sustainable, can do without it. The problem, again, is the large quantities. Imagine how much water is used for billions of animals and add to that the water needed for cleaning barns that no animal has ever left and for the processes related to slaughtering and meat processing. Are we sure there isn’t a smarter way to use all this water, when half of the planet is at risk of drought?

The solution exists

If our project is so different from that of other farmers, it is because our goal is not simply to provide delicious meat, but to create from scratch a new production system that respects both the animal and the environment.

Here is how we solve, point by point, the main issues of intensive farming:

1. No tree has been cut down for our pigs (unless they knocked it down themselves!). Our animals live in a semi-free range environment and, when they are hungry, they roam the forests and forage for acorns, fruits, roots and mushrooms according to the season.
   We occupy a territory and at the same time protect it, ensuring it remains in its natural state, just as we found it and as we want to leave it to our children.
2. We cannot prevent livestock waste from containing nitrogen and methane, but we can reduce the environmental impact by keeping the quantities small. The foundation of our project is actually this: we are the first to say that meat should be enjoyed, but also consumed with awareness and moderation.
   We do not need billions of animals to eat well and be healthy. The solution is simple: reduce consumption by choosing quality. It is good for the environment and for our health.
3. We use very little water and do so with the utmost care. Our animals are few and spend most of their lives outdoors. Our meat and cured meat production focuses more on quality than quantity, so we can easily limit all consumption.
   Same goes for greenhouse gasses. However, what sets us apart most from other producers is transportation. While many send animals to abattoirs abroad to cut costs, we only rely on a local abattoir that we know well and know how they work.

Not all meat is the same because not all farms are the same. Only semi-free range farming ensures a decent life for the animals and a reduced environmental impact.

Our project does not follow the logic of profit — otherwise, we would do like everyone else — but instead follows the path of tradition, with just a few modernizations and improvements. An old-fashioned approach that perfectly meets all the needs of today. Let’s see how.

An ethical, healthy and sustainable system

Extensive farming is good for the animals, allowing them to live as close as possible to their natural state, but also for the environment and the end consumer.

Our farming is

• ethical: the animals have all the space they need to live well, following their natural instincts. At Grigio del Casentino®, we follow this rule: maximum ten pigs per hectare of land. This pig/land ratio also allows us to protect the soil and keep the nitrogen problem in the effluent under control.
  It is also ethical in terms of time, as we slaughter animals that are at least 14 months old. The pigs spend their time in a natural way in the Casentino forests, without drugs that accelerate their growth. As we also said in our article on conscious meat consumption, the entire project is based on respecting time. We are not interested in shortcuts because speeding up the pace means corrupting something exceptional.
• healthy: our animals eat what nature gives them according to the seasons and a natural, healthy and wholesome supplementation we have developed over the years. Hormones and antibiotics, which are regularly administered on intensive farming where the risk of epidemics and contagion is very high, are banned from our pigs’ diets.
• sustainable: extensive breeding has a limited environmental impact. We do not cut down trees to make room for pigs; rather, we protect our land. We keep this land in its natural state, as we inherited it from our grandparents and as we want to leave it to our children. We rely on a trusted local abattoir, reducing transportation needs.

What has changed – and what has not – compared to traditional farming

Compared to fifty years ago, many things have changed. Today, we can guarantee the highest level of health safety and compliance with all hygiene standards related not only to slaughtering, but also to curing, packaging and shipping.

Our laboratory in Soci is equipped with the latest technology to keep fresh meat at the right temperature. We have cells for meat resting, salting and curing with a state-of-the-art thermal control system.

We follow protocols for meat processing and sanitizing environments with the utmost care. Compared to the way meat was produced thirty years ago, there have been significant advancements in hygienic control.

While many things have changed, many have remained the same. For us, the pig is still a precious asset, just as it was for the farmers in Casentino seventy years ago. “Nothing from the pig goes to waste” is our motto and the foundation of our technique.

For us, slaughtering an animal just to make two hams is inconceivable. When we process an animal, we do it with respect and responsibility. Every cut of meat is valuable and must be enhanced, also because sometimes it is in the “scraps” that the most sincere taste is hidden.

Our project is also deeply rooted in the territory. Grigio del Casentino® would not be the same without Casentino. These animals are closely connected to these forests. The Grigio was only recognized as a fattening hybrid in 2022, but it has characterized our valley for centuries.

Casentino is the natural habitat of our pigs, but it is also our home, the place where we grew up and started our business. Ours is first and foremost a project to recover a tradition, which we have updated to meet all hygienic and sanitary requirements.

Extensive breeding is the basis of conscious meat consumption. We have returned to the methods of the past, without drugs or sheds, because meat, for us, is a precious asset and not an industrial product that can be mass-produced.

In the industrial production of cured meats and sausages, most of the work is done by machines. The logic is that of the assembly line: many quick steps to produce as many identical batches as possible in the shortest possible time, more like factories than producers.

This system is not for us. Meat is anything but an anonymous, replicable piece. Our project is based on very different values: respect for the animal and time, protection of local gastronomic culture, and artisanal expertise.

It all starts with the animal and its well-being

Our pigs are genetically perfect. Born from the crossbreeding of Cinta Senese and Large White, they provide an excellent quantity of meat with a good proportion of marbling fat, which is the highlight of our products. However, an exceptional animal isn’t enough for an exceptional product. How it lived and what it ate are two essential factors.

The Grigio del Casentino® pigs live semi-wild in the woods of Casentino, feeding on what nature provides according to the seasons. We do not give them any drugs to speed up their growth, but instead, we respect the rhythm of nature and give our pigs all the time they need to follow their instincts in their natural habitat.

Authentic processes, like those of our grandparents

Even an animal raised like this doesn’t guarantee an exceptional product. Between the farm and the plate, there’s a crucial step for quality, processing.

Slaughtering and butchering

The first steps are slaughtering and butchering, and already here you can see the differences between industrial production and artisanal craftsmanship. In the former, meat is divided quickly. When the sole aim is profit, there’s no time to carefully examine each specimen and assess its potential.

Those who do this work on an artisanal level, however, know this well: no two pigs are alike. Massimiliano, our “norcino” partner, evaluates in real-time, case by case, which cuts to allocate to which cured meats. The goal isn’t to force production but to bring out the best from each animal.

Another substantial difference is that large-scale productions process raw material according to the specific cured meats to be produced without going outside the standard products. This results in two things (which we don’t like at all): waste and standardization.

Besides enhancing every animal, we make the most of it. We don’t produce just any good, and we don’t work with just any other material. Rather, we work with the meat of animals that have been under our care for 14 months. Slaughtering a pig to make two hams for us is inconceivable.

Nothing from the pig goes to waste, first out of respect and then because all meat is precious and should be valued. Try our capaccia or our sambudelli, and you too will fall in love with the so-called scraps.

Ingredients and aging methods

As we’ve seen, meat processing differs greatly between industrial and artisanal production, but ingredients and aging methods also change quite a bit. In short, cured meats “factories” do not disdain chemistry at all in order to speed up processes and eliminate risks. The aesthetics must be important too, judging by the neon pink hues you see in supermarket refrigerators.

We don’t like neon pink. We prefer the true color (and flavor) of pork. In our artisanal cured meats, we use natural and genuine ingredients, such as herbs and wild fennel, the scent of our fields. Like any good pork butcher worth his salt, we also have a secret curing method, a recipe that has been handed down for generations and which we jealously guard.

Zero dyes, preservatives, allergens, nitrites or nitrates. We wait as long as it takes and work only with temperature and humidity to create a high-quality artisanal product.

Local supply chain with real kilometers

The gulf between industrial and artisanal products comes from the type of farming, butchering and ingredients, but also from the project’s philosophy.

Whoever buys a Grigio del Casentino® product supports a local reality, deeply rooted in the territory for generations now. Each product that comes out with our brand is a piece of our story, which is not defined by large-scale operations or shortcuts, but by hard work, passion, and principles.

It all falls within the real kilometer concept, the guarantee of sustainability for the consumer. Our piglets are born here, raised here, slaughtered and processed here, in an ethical and sustainable cycle.

Grigio del Casentino® artisanal cured meats are not like any other. We chose a hybrid pig with unique genetic qualities and decided to raise it as it was done in the past, in a semi-wild range and with a natural diet.

Furthermore, we decided not to aim for mass production but for the enhancement of each single animal with tailored cuts and natural seasonings. Zero chemicals, zero compromises.

The result is local, artisanal, ethical, and sustainable production. For us, a project to be proud of. For you, the assurance of a product of a different caliber.

Our animals live in a semi-free range in the forests of Casentino, where they feed on the fruits of the land. We do not use antibiotics or hormones to make them grow faster, and we respect the rhythms of nature. That’s why all of Grigio del Casentino® meat is delicious, healthy, and genuine.

This alone would be a good reason not to waste it, but the issues are actually twofold. The first concerns ethics, and the second concerns taste. Let’s take a closer look at them.

Respecting the animal, the first rule of our work

Those who shop at the supermarket hardly think about the life of each animal when they put a steak or sausage in their cart.

For the general public, meat is a consumer good like any other, an item that can be mass-produced without much thought. For us, it’s exactly the opposite. We are the first to say that meat consumption should be moderate, sustainable, and conscious.

Animal welfare is sacred to us, and every pig must live well, in full respect of its nature and instincts. Our pigs are free to root in the mud, dig for roots, and lie in the sun. They are pigs that live like pigs.

The idea of slaughtering these animals to make two hams and throwing away the rest is inconceivable. Meat is a precious gift that we cannot waste. It’s a matter of respect for the animal and for the time we have dedicated to it.

Ethical and sustainable farming, like in the past

In our grandparents’ time, all the breeding farms were sustainable. Only the pigs that were needed were slaughtered, and all the meat was used, because wasting it simply wasn’t an option. As we have seen in our article on scraps, it was also a matter of necessity.

Even the less noble parts were recovered and valued with wisdom and care. We can say it out loud, excellence was born from necessity. Offal and the fifth quarter have given rise to some of the finest artisanal cured meats you can taste. And this brings us to the second point.

From waste to precious ingredients

Nothing can be wasted from the pig because we must respect the animal and all its meat, but also because it would be crazy to waste such goodness.

As we have already said, the perfect genetics, semi-free range farming, natural diet, and artisanal processing are precious ingredients of Grigio del Casentino® products. With an animal raised and processed in this way, there are no scraps, only cuts to rediscover.

Even talking about noble cuts and poor cuts makes little sense. Those who still believe there are first-class and second-class parts clearly have never tasted our Capaccia or Sambudello, made precisely from the so-called scraps.

A culinary offering that stands out

We are proud to offer uncommon products that some people might not even know about. We want to offer good meat, which for us also means healthy, ethical, and sustainable, and to bring back to life the flavors of the past and the genuine taste of simple, well-made things.

To do so, we must move away from the dominant trend, from forced production, and from the homologation of flavors to return to short supply chains, semi free range farming, ancient recipes, and a truly respectful approach to the animal and all the meat it can provide.

Today, we no longer need to recover all the meat, but we continue doing so out of passion. We work with ethics and responsibility and carry forward a project that is based exactly on these values. Nothing can be wasted from our pig, because nothing is to be thrown away. Everything can be transformed into a tasting experience with the right processing.

However, a genetically perfect animal is not enough for exceptional products. The meat of our Grigio del Casentino® pigs is so good because the animals live outdoors and feed on what nature offers them.

Extensive breeding in their natural habitat is an essential ingredient. Grigio wouldn’t be the same without the forests of Casentino. Its meat wouldn’t carry all the scents and flavors of nature, aromas that change with the seasons and offer a true taste experience.

Semi-wild pigs, life outdoors

As we have seen in our article on fat, all pigs that have the gene of an Italian autochthonous breed must be raised semi-wild. These animals are not meant for cages or sheds: if they were confined, the amount of fat would become excessive.

Semi-wild breeding means taking care of the animals without taking away their opportunity to be animals. Unlike what happens in intensive farming, true meat factories, our pigs are free to move, feed healthily, and grow.

We have no cages, only small huts that serve to shelter the pigs, especially the young ones. Zero hormones or antibiotics: our pigs live in conditions of well-being and have all the time to grow naturally.

Natural feeding

It’s the natural feeding in this precise territory that makes the meat of these pigs so special. Experienced palates can enjoy recognizing the scents of the different seasons. Chestnuts, mushrooms, fruits, and berries leave their aromas in the meat.

Grigio pigs feed on nature surrounding it, which is typical of this valley. In practice, eating its meat means eating a piece of Casentino.

Its farming keeps alive a tradition and a territory. Extensive breeding protects an entire ecosystem and maintains the traditional techniques of farmers who worked with respect, without any waste.

Between the Grigio pigs and the Casentino forests, there is a relationship that must be protected. It’s a natural balance: nature nourishes the animals, which in turn maintain biodiversity by spreading the seeds of the fruits they feed on.

Genuine products, from the forest to the plate

The connection with the forests and outdoor life are essential ingredients of this meat. However, processing methods also make a difference between a good product and an exceptional one.

But let’s start from the beginning. Grigio del Casentino® meat is exceptional because:

1. The crossbreeding between Large White and Cinta Senese results in an animal with a perfect balance between fat and lean meat. We’re talking about pigs of superior genetic quality.
2. Extensive farming ensures the welfare of the animals. Pigs are free to move and feed on nature. Zero antibiotics, hormones, or other rubbish.
3. Processing methods are artisanal and follow the traditional recipes of our land. We work with time, humidity, and temperature, without chemical shortcuts.

Products made this way are not just tastier, and we’re not just talking about flavor. For us, good meat also means healthy, genuine, ethical, and sustainable.

The taste of Casentino

Perhaps because Casentino is our home, we firmly believe that bringing to the table a food that so clearly identifies a territory is always a plus. The meat of an animal that has lived freely in its natural habitat is very different from that of one raised in some shed somewhere.

Food – and meat especially – should tell a story and have its own identity, a well-defined origin. The exact opposite of what happens with the industrial production of meat, where pigs are raised with only profit in mind.

Grigio del Casentino pigs have now become one of the protagonists of the Casentino territory. The Cinta Senese perfectly represents Tuscany – just think that it has been bred for over a thousand years and even appears in Ambrogio Lorenzetti’s famous fresco cycle Allegory of Good and Bad Government (1338-1339) – but the Grigio pigs have also conquered a place of honor.

Bred by generations of Casentino farmers for its exceptional meat, excellent resistance, and reproductive capacity inherited from the Large White, our Grey Pig of Casentino® is no longer just a farm animal, but a part of the history and culture of the territory.

Diet is the most important choice we can make every day. Choosing good, healthy, and sustainable meat from extensive breeding and respectful farms, where animals live semi-wild, is the best way to do good for ourselves and the environment.

In addition to meat cuts, we have fat, the “bonus” of our products. Then there are the bones, perfect for flavoring broths and brown stocks, and the rinds, perfect in a thousand ways. But there are also offal, an important part both in terms of quantity and taste.

Parts of the head, liver, tongue, spleen, and lungs: historically scraps, today innovative elements. Starting from these ingredients, we produce artisanal cured meats that are good in every sense, because they are flavorful, ethical, and sustainable.

Fifth quarter: the revenge of offal

Since the dawn of time, there have been noble parts of the pig – loin, leg, ribs just to name a few – and poor parts. The first ones are consumed fresh or cured, the latter are destined for cold cuts. But who said it still has to be like that?

When every farm had its own pigs, fine cuts were sold, while what was left over from processing was recovered into products that remained with the farmer.

A double recovery, in practice. The first because all cured meats actually originate from the need to preserve pork meat as long as possible. The second because, as we always say, everything but the oink, and even the less noble parts must be valued with wisdom and attention.

For a long time, eating offal was “for peasants”. Some of the best cold cuts were born because not even a gram of meat could be wasted, certainly not from gastronomic research. In fact some exceptional artisanal cured meats have emerged from the need.

A matter of respect for the animal

Today we no longer need to use every single part of the pig. And yet, we do not want to give up these ancient and traditional preparations.

The first reason is respect for the animal. We cannot slaughter a pig, exploit only some parts, and throw away others. We use everything, because all meat is a gift, and everything can be transformed into excellence with the right processing.

We promote conscious and responsible meat consumption. We are the first to say that meat should be consumed in moderation and, above all, chosen with the utmost care. For us, meat is good not only when it is tasty and flavorful, but also when it comes from animals raised in an ethical and sustainable way.

A slice of authentic goodness

However, be careful: do not think that our passion for scraps is due to a purely ethical question. Respect for the animal, for the time and resources spent to raise it, is the basis of our working method, but there is much more.

The fact is that the offal of our Grigio del Casentino® are truly amazing. They have a unique taste, and a sincere goodness that nourishes and tells much about a territory and its culture.

As we have seen in our insight into Casentino, our sambudello and our capaccia perfectly represent our idea of conscious consumption and, coincidentally, they are delicious.

Sambudello comes from “S’ha un budello?” (“Do we have a gut?”), the question the butcher asked to preserve trimmings and leftover offal. In this cold cut, we also find wild fennel, of which we use both the seeds and the flowers for a perfectly balanced aroma.

Here’s another protagonist of the poor butchers’ tradition in the area: black pepper was too expensive, wild fennel was found at the edges of fields. Farmers settled for the second choice, but ended up creating a mix of flavors like no other.

And what about the capaccia? Head, rinds, and fifth quarter roughly cut and combined together for a product as peculiar to the eye as unique to the taste. Orange and lemon soften the intense taste of this recovery product and amplify its goodness.

Many consumers think that the best cuts of pork are those found in the supermarket. Nothing more wrong. If we want to offer truly interesting, ethical, and sustainable artisanal cured meats, we must broaden our horizons. It is in the less noble parts and offal that the true genuine taste of the Casentino tradition lies. Anything but scraps!

• Genetics. Grigio del Casentino is a crossbreed of Large White and Cinta Senese pigs. From the former, it inherited the size. From the latter, the significant amount of marbled fat and predisposition to outdoor life.
• Natural life. Our pigs are genetically predisposed to live in semi-free range conditions, and that’s how we raise them among the woods in Casentino. Here they feed on what nature has to offer according to the seasons, without drugs or antibiotics that accelerate growth.
• Artisanal processing method. Our products are simple and genuine, like those our grandparents used to make. No “cheating” is allowed, as we call it, meaning no preservatives, dyes, additives or stabilizers. Time, humidity, temperature: these are the only tools we use.

The last two things are not necessarily connected. There are ethical farms that respect the animals’ lives, but when it comes to processing meat into cured meats and sausages, they don’t hesitate to use some help from chemistry to limit risks during aging.

And there are also cured meats made only with natural ingredients. Too bad, however, that the pigs are from intensive breeding, raised in cages two meters long and filled with antibiotics. Excellent procedures, perhaps, but on a raw material of poor quality.

Our project is different because we have a comprehensive vision that spans from the birth of the pig to the labeling of each single product. There is no before and after slaughtering, because everything that happens during the animal’s life influences taste and quality.

A natural choice

Grigio del Casentino is a hybrid pig, the result of crossing Large White and Cinta Senese breeds. As we have seen in our tribute to fat, our Grigio has inherited an important fat component from the Cinta. It cannot be raised in an intensive breeding system because its fat would become excessive.

Extensive breeding is the best choice for this animal, the only one able to protect both its well-being and the quality of the meat at the same time. The lives of our pigs are healthy because they take place in their natural habitat, respecting their growth times, only with natural feeding.

We slaughter animals that are at least 14 months old and have experienced an entire cycle of seasons. Furthermore, we do not administer drugs except for the vaccine required by law by the local health authority.

Our pigs live in total connection with nature and you can perfectly taste it in the meat. The most experienced palates may even recognize the scents of mushrooms, chestnuts and fruits through their meat.

A processing method that doesn’t seek shortcuts

For a quality product, an exceptional raw material is needed. The quality of the meat is, obviously, the first requirement for premium cured meats. Only if the pig has lived well, for a sufficient time, with a healthy feeding and without drugs, will the finished product truly be good.

A small clarification: good, for us, doesn’t just mean tasty and flavorful. It means produced in a respectful, ethical, and sustainable way. That’s why we firmly believe the supply chain is fundamental and dedicate the utmost attention to the lives of our pigs, not just to the processing of their meat.

We’ve made a “radical” choice. In our products, we only want natural ingredients and no allergens. No preservatives or dyes: our products do not last like those of large-scale retailers and are not fluorescent pink, but they contain all the authentic taste of pork. We don’t use additives or stabilizers because, simply put, Grigio del Casentino® meat is perfect as it is.

Working only with time, humidity and temperature involves considerable risk. If the batch doesn’t turn out perfectly, we can’t “fix it” in any way, and this also results in a financial loss. Not the easiest path, indeed, but certainly our path, the one we’ve chosen for our authentic, sincere and genuine project.

Superior quality

Grigio del Casentino® meat is exceptional, and – as we have just seen – there are several reasons for it. The first is the “birth” from the crossing of Large White and Cinta Senese breeds, a crossbreed that generates a perfect animal in terms of meat yield.

The type of breeding too affects the quality of the meat. For high-quality products, animals must be raised in a healthy, respectful way that preserves their well-being. We raise them in a semi-free range, the only way to enhance their natural qualities, ensure their welfare and pursue an ethical and sustainable project.

The choice to use only natural ingredients respects the purity of this meat. Healthy, ethical and sustainable goodness from the wood to the plate!

Our project aims to bring back a tradition. We’ve restored the farming methods of our grandparents, without drugs to make the animals grow faster or barns to confine them in. Even our approach to meat is like it used to be. There’s no waste, for a matter of respect and because every cut of a pig raised this way is precious, even the fat.

Casentino is the habitat of our pigs, but it’s also our home, the valley where we grew up and brought our project to life.

When farming is intimately tied to territory

Our Grigio del Casentino is a hybrid pig. Like all pigs with a gene of an Italian autochthonous breed, it has a considerable fat component – inherited from the Cinta Senese – that serves to survive outdoors in the coldest months.

We are talking, therefore, about a pig genetically predisposed to extensive breeding. The animals must be free to move, or the amount of fat becomes excessive.

The forests of Casentino are the place of our Grigio, its natural habitat. In this territory, pigs find acorns, berries, mushrooms, chestnuts, roots and fruits according to the season.

The habitat of our pigs, our home

Casentino is not only the land of origin of our animals, it is also our home. Our project came to life right here, in Soci, in the province of Arezzo.

For Massi, the first farm was the estate purchased by his grandmother in 1961. In the small stable under the house there were two pigs, the basis of a subsistence economy. Every winter they were slaughtered; one was consumed by the family and the other was sold to cover the expenses of the first.

At that time, the pig was a primary asset for the family, so much so that it was subject to seizure. Its meat was a precious gift, which could not be wasted in any way. This was the first lesson Massi learned, and even today it is the logic that guides the entire project.

After the death of his grandmother, the estate was divided among her eight children and then among the grandchildren. However, before dying, the grandmother had expressed the desire that everything, sooner or later, would return as it was. She wanted the family estate to remain united, and that even after her there would be someone to take care of the pigs with respect and experience.

She understood that Massi would be the right person. She left him a smaller share of land than the others, but designated for him the stable, which has now become his home. And Massi slowly bought back the entire estate and started raising pigs there.

Now the animals are many more, we are talking about a real extensive breeding and the estate is no longer enough, but the underlying idea is the same. Farming like it used to be for the welfare of the animal and superior quality meat.

The gastronomic tradition of Casentino

Casentino is a land rich in history, nature and culture. Here you can find the National Park of the Casentino Forests, the Monastery of Camaldoli, the Sanctuary of Chiusi della Verna and the splendid Romanesque parish churches.

The gastronomic tradition of the area is one of the reasons for its fame. Our farming is part of a rich tradition of products that have pork as the protagonist.

The ‘costoliccio’ (ribs), the ‘rocchio’ (sausage), and the ‘sbriciolona’ (wild fennel salami) are typical products of the area, but what best reflect our idea of ​​conscious consumption are the cured meats considered less “noble”.

The ‘sambudello’, with mixed meat and offal, is the perfect example of the recovery ideal. The name itself demonstrates it: ‘sambudello’ derives from “S’ha un budello?” (Do we have a gut?), the question that the butcher asked to preserve scraps and leftover offal.

Even the ‘capaccia’ is an emblem of our motto “everything but the oink.” Head, rind and ‘quinto quarto’ (fifth quarter) come together in this mosaic of cuts, scents and different flavors.

However, beware: don’t think that the quality of these products lies only in recovery. They are perfect from an ethical point of view not to waste meat, but their value goes far beyond. Those who have tasted them at least once know: the goodness of these traditional products cannot be described in words.

It all starts from the territory

Grigio del Casentino pigs cannot be raised just anywhere, or at least not with the same results. The goodness of their meat depends on natural feeding, which in turn depends on the season and the abundance of the Casentino forests.

Even our perspective would be different far from this land. Here is where we were born, where we learned the value of extensive breeding, and where we shaped our taste in meat.

Finally, this is the land of fatback, cheek and porchetta, but also of many recovery products, real opportunities to enjoy the most genuine goodness.

However, much of what we obtain from our pigs is precisely fat. Considering that our motto is “everything but the oink,” valuing it is fundamental for respecting the animal and the work behind it.

A key element of our meat

ANAS, the Italian pig breeders association, certified the Grigio as a fattening hybrid in 2022. As we have seen about the birth of the Grigio del Casentino, the regulation establishes that one of the parents must be of Large White breed, while the other of Cinta Senese.

And it is precisely from the Cinta Senese that our pigs have inherited a remarkable “functional” fat component, which is necessary to survive outdoors during the colder months.

Not just a matter of genetics

The matter, in reality, extends beyond the Grigio del Casentino. All pigs that have the gene of an Italian native breed have an important fat component, and for this reason they must be raised in a semi free range. If they were confined in cages, they would accumulate an exaggerated amount of fat.

The involvement of the breeder is fundamental. Our Grigio del Casentino® is a semi-free-range pig: it lives freely in its natural habitat but also receives a percentage of feeding supplementation.

The quantity and quality of supplementation are crucial for the quality of the meat and for the perfect balance between fat and lean. We personally select the supplementation – natural and of high quality, of course – and have established an exact “plan” of feeding.

The animals are divided into five groups based on age, and each group receives a precise amount of supplemental food. Finding the right formula was not easy, but now we manage to have balanced and homogeneous litters, even though the animals live outdoors and are not always under our control.

A signal of animal health

Fat is also an essential element for monitoring meat quality. If the animal has suffered during its life, it shows in the fat after slaughter. If, on the other hand, the fat is nice and white, it means the pig has lived well and the meat it has given us is good, healthy, tasty, and flavorful.

Quality is also evident from the color

In fresh meat, fat should be white tending to pink, but with aging it MUST change color. In cured meats where the fatty component is exposed to air (e.g., cured pork loin, pork leg, pork belly), after thirty days the fat tends to yellow. It’s a different story for cured meats that have fat inside (e.g., salami, sausage, “sbriciolona”), which therefore remains whiter.

To each type of fat corresponds its cured meat

Each anatomical part of the pig has different fat. The cheek fat, for example, is very different from that of the back. The consistency, oiliness, quantity, thickness, and taste change.

The secret to quality cured meats? The right type of fat in the right quantity.

The first thing is to decide, during the meat cutting, which cured meat each type of fat will be used for. Different types are suitable for different processing. Soft fat, for example, is not suitable for aging but is excellent inside sambudello.

The second is to define the percentage of fat. At this stage, the butcher’s hand makes the difference. There are no written rules and each producer follows their own recipe, which also depends on the gastronomic traditions of the area and the tastes of the clientele.

Good, but always to be consumed in moderation

Fat is a filter: if the meat is not healthy because the pigs are not raised well, the fat will be even less so. If, on the other hand, it comes from animals raised in an artful manner, like our pigs raised in a semi free range, it’s a concentration of flavor and fatty acids to be consumed, in any case, without exaggeration. We are the first to say that meat should be eaten with respect and moderation.

Let’s also remember that fat is one of the macronutrients along with carbohydrates and proteins. Not all fats we consume must be of animal origin, but when they are, they must be of the highest quality. Fat must be healthy to not harm our health, and the meat must come from an ethical and sustainable breeding to not harm the planet and the welfare of animals.

The return of fat

The return of fat is a victory for nutrition. It’s an important part of the meat of our animals that we don’t want to waste, but not only that. In terms of taste, this fat – the result of semi-free-range breeding, natural feeding and perfectly calibrated supplementation – is the real plus of our products.