Giovanni Pacini, Managing Director in Agriculture:

“I'd like to achieve with Chianina what I have done with the Cinta”

The province of Siena , in the heart of Tuscany , is known for its rolling hills, dotted with lonely cypresses. In the Chianti valley the world's best wines and oils are being produced. But beside these famous brands, the province brings forth many other quality products. One of them is the Chianina cow.

Siena is registered in the list of
Unesco's world cultural and natural heritage

In the province of Siena , where the majority of breeding farms continue to exist, the Chianina cow is being bred in accordance with a tried and tested formula. The protective attitude of the stock-breeders keeps this unique breed alive. On the other hand, their conservatism rules out any form of innovation.

Giovanni Pacini: "Promoting meat is harder than promoting wine"

“The cattle breeding sector has trouble with its market position,” says Giovanni Pacini, managing director in agriculture in the province of Siena . “The breeders have great possibilities but they don't reap all the fruits of their labour. New technologies such as marketing are difficult for them to accept.”

For thirty years Pacini has already been working for the province of Siena . His job is to promote traditional products from the region. Chianina is part of the package, as well as for instance the Cinta Senese swine, truffles, and a tome full of oil and wines, such as the renowned Chianti, Brunello di Montalcino, Nobile di Montepulciano…

Promotion

“It's a fact that promoting meat is harder than, for example, promoting wine. The wine industry simply makes more use of quality labels because the entire process, from cultivation over handling to sales, remains property of the winegrower.

In the case of Chianina, only one part of this process will remain within the farm. The cattle is sold to a slaughterhouse and then to a butcher, and from then on the farmer isn't its owner anymore. There are more intermediaries than in viniculture and each participant wants his share of the promotion.”

“In my opinion there's another fundamental reason which complicates the case,” Pacini says, “and that's the application of sanitary norms to both animals and their food. But the major reason that this labour doesn't rate highly is of cultural nature. The breeders isolate themselves and have difficulty adapting to modern times.”

Guarantee

Farmers can demand a higher price for their goods if they succeed to provide them with quality labels. The highest warranty of quality is obtained through a D.O.P. -label. A D.O.P.-request has been submitted for Chianina but it has been rejected. “Chianina already enjoyed another protection, the Vitellone Bianco dell'Italia Centrale," Pacini explains. Chianina didn't distinguish itself enough to deserve another protection. Nonetheless, the animal did meet all the D.O.P. requirements. I'd like to achieve with Chianina what I have done with the Cinta, and that is to identify the product with the region, to create a connotation in the people's minds between Chianina and the province of Siena . I don't know if I'll succeed,” Pacini concludes.

mgu

http://www.provincia.siena.it/

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