Division 5.3 Causal link between the geographical area and the quality or characteristics of the product (for PDO) or a specific quality, the reputation or other characteristic of the product (for PGI)

The requisite features of ‘Salame Brianza’ PDO depend on environmental conditions and on natural and human factors.

In particular, the properties of the raw material are peculiar to the geographical macro-zone identified in point 4, while the production of ‘Salame Brianza’ is founded on the conditions of the micro-zone described in the same point.

The characteristics and natural resources of the macro-zone have in fact enabled the considerable expansion of agriculture and livestock farming, shaping the economic activities in the area today, with a major maize-growing industry and numerous feed manufacturers transforming cereal crops into feed for the huge number of pig and cattle farms in the zone.

Although the macro-zone has always been an ideal source for the raw materials needed for pig-rearing (maize and whey), it is equally true that the geography and morphology of the Brianza region have been key factors in enabling the development of typical products such as ‘Salame Brianza’.

The alpine range that forms the north-west border of the Brianza area actually brings special climatic conditions to the whole Piedmont region: air currents and weather systems are filtered by the vast mountain ranges, creating various atmospheric phenomena such as air-filtering, warm down-slope winds, cold winds (when the currents blow from the north instead of from the west), and fog. All this naturally produces the ideal conditions for ageing ‘Salame Brianza’, as the fermentation that begins during ageing is due to the array of microbial flora found in the places used for processing and ageing the product, and the microbial flora is itself determined by the environmental characteristics of the zone (temperature, humidity, etc.).