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Piedmontese cattle: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 22:37, 11 June 2011

It has been suggested that this article be merged with Piedmontese beef. (Discuss) Proposed since January 2011.

The Piedmontese (Italian: razza bovina Piemontese) is a breedofcattle from the region of Piedmont, in north-west Italy. The calves are born fawn in colour, turning grey-white as they mature.

The breed developed through natural selection followed by the normal processes of domestication and, particularly from the late nineteenth century when the characteristic postpartum hypertrophic muscle growth (‘double muscling’) first appeared, through selective breeding. The first herd-book was opened in 1877.

The cattle are raised both for their milk, which is used for a number of the region’s traditional cheeses (Castelmagno, Bra, Raschera, and Toma Piemontese), and for meat: beef from the Piedmontese cattle is seen as a premium product.

The Piedmontese breed carries the gene for inactive myostatin, which increases muscularity, and also reduces the fat content while improving tenderness in the beef. This low fat beef is also lower in calories, higher in protein and contains a higher percentage of the good Omega 3 Fatty Acids. The fullblood population is considered homozygous for this in-active myostatin gene.The beef from Piedmontese and Piedmontese-cross cattle is consistent for these qualities of leanness and tenderness because it is a genetic influence rather than an environmental effect.

The herd in Piedmont numbers some 273,000 head of cattle.

See also

Belgian Blue

References

• "Associazione Nazionale Allevatori Bovini di Razza Piemontese". Retrieved 2006-12-02.
• "Breeds of Livestock - Piedmontese Cattle". Oklahoma State University College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources. Retrieved 2006-12-02.
• Piera Genta (ed.). "La Razza Bovina Piemontese" (in Italian). Torino Magazine / Piemondo. Retrieved 2006-12-02. {{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Piedmontese cattle.

• Agraria.org Razze bovine: Piemontese Template:It
• British Piemontese Cattle Society
• Piedmontese Association of the United States
• Irish Piemontese Society
• prodottitipici.com :: Bovino piemontese Template:It
• Regione Piemonte. Piemontese: Origine e sviluppo della razza Template:It
• Video The Piedmontese and the "Double Muscle" Gene

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