Agerolese


The Agerolese is a breed of dairy cattle from the area of Agerola, in Campania in southern Italy. It is particularly associated with the Sorrento Peninsula and Monti Lattari. It derives from cross-breeding of indigenous Podolica cattle with Italian Holstein-Friesian, Bruna Italiana and Jersey cattle. It is one of the sixteen minor Italian cattle breeds of limited diffusion recognised and protected by the Ministero delle Politiche Agricole Alimentari e Forestali, the Italian ministry of agriculture.

History

The Agerolese derives from cross-breeding of indigenous grey Podolica cattle with a variety of imported breeds including Friesian, Braunvieh and Jersey. The earliest such importation may have been by the Bourbon kings of Naples, who in the eighteenth century imported breeding stock of various breeds to improve the local grey cattle. It seems that when in 1845 the adventurer and soldier General Paolo Avitabile returned from England to his native Agerola, he brought with him Jersey cattle, which were added to the local stock. Other later crosses have included Bretonne Pie Noir, Bruna Italiana and Frisona Italiana. The breed was officially recognised and named "Agerolese" in 1952, and the breed standard was approved in the same year. At that time the breed numbered 2760 head.
A census of the breed completed on 1 January 2002 found a total of 200 head, of which 103 were adult. In 2007 the conservation status of the breed was reported by the FAO as "endangered-maintained". At the end of 2012 a total population of 347 head was reported, including 18 breeding bulls and 252 breeding cows.

Characteristics

Agerolese cows are brown, and bulls almost black; both have a pale dorsal stripe. The tip of the muzzle is whitish, the horns are of medium size.
Height at the withers is for males, for females; weight is for bulls, for cows.

Use

The milk yield of the Agerolese is about for primiparous and for pluriparous cows. Cows may give per day of milk with more than 3.5% fat. It is used to make butter and Italian cheeses such as Fior di Latte and Provolone del Monaco. This last has DOP status; it is made only in thirteen comuni of the province of Naples, and must contain a minimum of 20% Agerolese milk.