Production regulations and characteristics of cow Piedmontese Noble Mlik

The need to combine the quality of animal products with the human health as well as to revitalize the milk chain has recently led to the development of a new model based on milk and dairy products characteristics and specificity. The model, called Latte Nobile (Noble Milk), was conceived in South Italy in 2011, and it is now fast spreading in other parts of the country. In Piedmont (NW Italy) a two-year project, developed on different research lines (agronomy, animal nutrition, chemical and microbiological features of the product, heat treatment processes, shelf-life and traceability), aimed to adapt the Noble Milk model to the environmental and productive conditions of this region. Thanks to the results of the project, Piedmontese Noble Milk (PNM) production regulations have been proposed and the product is expected to enter the milk market in 2015. According to the regulations, the PNM is obtained from animals yielding maximum 6000 kg of milk per lactation and fed fresh grass and/or hay from local mixed grasslands (minimum 70% of daily dry matter intake). Silages and genetically modified feedstuffs are forbidden and only pastures or meadows with at least four dominant species are allowed for animal feeding. Pastures and meadows must also constitute at least the 50% of the farm forage system. Cows must graze for at least 150 days per year under a stocking rate not exceeding 1.5 animal unit ha–1 year–1. Animal welfare has to be guaranteed in accordance with the Welfare Quality standards. PNM milk contains >0.25g 100 g–1 fat of total conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) and >0.50g 100 g–1 fat of total omega-3 fatty acids (n3 FA). According to the results of the project, typical values range from 0.29 (winter) to 1.71 (summer) g 100 g–1 fat and from 0.60 (winter) to 1.99 (summer) g 100 g–1 fat for CLA and n3 FA, respectively. The linoleic/alpha-linolenic acids ratio must be lower than 4 all year round. The PNM can be sold raw or pasteurized; the findings of the heat treatment trials suggest that, to preserve the best chemical, nutritional and organoleptic characteristics of the product, PNM should be pasteurized at 72°C for at least one minute. A specific software has been implemented to guarantee the traceability of all the PNM production process, from the forage system to the derived Piedmontese Noble Milk chemical and microbiological characteristics.