The “Slow Food Presidium” Brand in Switzerland

The “Slow Food Presidium” Brand in Switzerland

The “Slow Food Presidium” Brand There is no question that the Presidia represent a great value to the Slow Food association. The 350 currently active projects and the 10,000-plus producers involved around the world are the result of a decade of work, of forcefully asserting and putting into practice fundamental values like the protection of biodiversity, the preservation of local environments and traditional knowledge, the sustainability of food production and the ethics of the production process and the market. Whether new or of long standing, the Presidia require a constant commitment by Slow Food, especially in terms of coordination activities, technical assistance, training and promotion of the products. Out of the 350 international Presidia, almost 200 are in Italy, and it was here, between 2007 and 2008, that the association evaluated the results from its first few years. Slow Food considered the project’s future prospects, and decided that it was necessary to launch a new phase. One of the critical issues that emerged came out of the project’s commercial success and the immense media attention it has attracted. These factors generated a worrying phenomenon: The Presidia often had to deal with competition from imitations (similar products using the same name) or products presented as Presidia that had nothing to do with the Slow Food project. To clearly distinguish the Presidia and to protect consumers, producers and the project itself, Slow Food decided to accept a suggestion that had come from the producers themselves and to create and assign a brand for use on product labels. Once the International President’s Committee had given its approval (the charter for use of the logo was endorsed at the Puebla International Congress in 2007), Slow Food Italy registered the “Presidio Slow Food®” brand. The brand has helped bring clarity, and also greater commitment from the producers (it serves as a guarantee of respect for the production protocol), and their more active involvement in the association and the promotion of the Slow Food philosophy. Getting Authorization to Use the Brand 1 – Production Protocol Only producers who sign the Presidium production protocol (and a series of regulations drawn up by Slow Food) can use the brand. They thus become active subjects and personally guarantee that they will respect the shared rules. 2 – Producers’ Association The Presidium producers must first set up an association, or a consortium or cooperative (they can choose which form they prefer). If the producers are already joined together in an association, it is enough if the body officially agrees to respect the regulations for the use of the brand and confirms that it agrees with the philosophy of the Presidia project (with a resolution from its executive board). The producers’ association is responsible for the correct use of the brand. In the majority of cases, the association’s president or chairman is also the Presidium producers’ coordinator. 3 – Checks and Controls To control the production chain, Slow Food uses a system based on the responsibility of the producers and close and constant collaboration between the Presidium and Slow Food. This system brings together various elements: self-checking by individual producers, who commit to respecting the

production protocol; collective management of how the brand is used by the producers’ association, which acts as a guarantor for its members; and checks by consumers (Slow Food convivium leaders, cooks, visitors to Slow Food events). Each year, the producers report how much they have produced, how many animals they raised or how much land was planted with a specific variety, in a completely transparent way. The producers’ association collects this information into a single document (Slow Food provides a template for each product category). Additionally, it must be willing to provide supplementary economic data for any research or evaluations of the Presidium’s results conducted by Slow Food. This essential document is used for the first and most important control phase. Slow Food’s local representatives play a key role in the constant and timely evaluation of the sensory quality of the Presidia products from their own region. The regional coordinators must organize annual tasting committees that can evaluate the products (purchased on the market rather than requested from the producers). Slow Food also reserves the right to carry out checks wherever and whenever it believes necessary on the correct use of the brand, product quality, respect for the protocol and adhesion to Slow Food principles. For example, Slow Food regularly checks product samples from certain Presidia. The Slow Food Presidia Logo The brand is composed of a graphic logo and the words “Slow Food Presidium®” and must always be accompanied by the following text on the product packaging, labels, etc., in the local language: “The Presidia are Slow Food projects that protect quality products made on a small scale using traditional practices.” The Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity grants the use of the logo to the producers of each individual Presidium, subject to presentation of the necessary documentation. The producers cannot grant the use of the Presidium brand to others. All the production covered by the Presidium must use the brand. Any promotional publication produced by the Presidium that uses the Presidium brand (labels, brochures, leaflets, etc.) must always be approved by Slow Food Switzerland. Processors and Retailers Specific regulations apply to processors and retailers of Presidia products who want to join the Presidia project network, like restaurateurs, affineurs and retailers. Producers who buy and process Presidia products do not automatically qualify as Presidium producers and cannot automatically use the “Slow Food Presidium®” brand. To be able to use the brand, the processor must: • join the Presidium producers’ association • respect the protocol • have a small-scale business Processors who do not belong to a Presidium but who use Presidia products can still indicate that fact on the label, among the ingredients, but without using the Presidium brand. Slow Food can establish forms of collaboration with retailers who sell Presidia products and request support for the communication, promotion, selection or supply of the products. In these cases, Slow Food can grant the retailer the right to use the “Slow Food Presidium®” brand in their communication, in ways that must be agreed upon in advance. This decision can only be made by Slow Food Switzerland, in agreement with the Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity. More information can be found on the www.slowfoodfoundation.org website.

Why Use the Brand in Switzerland The Presidia are one of the most important projects for Slow Food Switzerland. The number of Presidia continues to grow from year to year, and considering the country’s size, the density of Presidia is particularly high. The project is in a similar situation to Italy in 2008, which explains the association’s need to start introducing the brand. To date, there are 22 active Swiss Presidia. Presidia are found in every canton and in every major product category: cheese, cured meats, fruit and vegetables, bread, honey, spirits, etc. The presence of a sponsor with a particular interest in the project (Coop Switzerland) has allowed Slow Food Switzerland to dedicate much time and attention to the project. The Swiss Presidia have been overseen with great care and dedication, thanks to the commitment of Slow Food Switzerland’s coordinators and convivium leaders, the work of a full-time employee and the collaboration of Slow Food Italy (which has shared its successful experience with the brand) and the Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity, following a collaboration agreement between the Slow Food Switzerland Foundation and the Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity and a financial commitment from the Slow Food Switzerland Foundation for 60,000 euros, to cover the costs of the work carried out in 2011. The priority given to biodiversity protection in the Swiss association’s work program, the opportunity to access significant financial resources and the availability of a number of people (within Slow Food Switzerland, Slow Food Italy and the Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity) with the skills needed to follow the Swiss Presidia projects, have allowed Slow Food Switzerland to carry out and complete the work necessary to request the International President’s Committee’s approval for the use of the “Slow Food Presidium” brand. Work Carried Out For the “Slow Food Presidium®” Brand in Switzerland In 2011, a work group composed of staff from the Slow Food Foundation and Slow Food Italy, supported by Slow Food Switzerland, met the Swiss Presidia producers and evaluated the status of the projects with the aim of helping them complete the steps necessary to obtain the “Slow Food Presidium” brand (specifically drawing up and sharing the Presidium protocol, creating a producers’ association and checking that the Presidium’s production conditions are in accordance with the project’s general guidelines). A total of 24 Presidia were visited: 13 had been started in past years and 11 were new proposals put forward by Slow Food Switzerland. During the course of these visits, the Slow Food Foundation experts met with Presidia producers, took part in meetings with all those involved in the projects, discussed and checked the production chains and practices and explained the regulations regarding the use of the logo, sharing their experiences from three years of its application in Italy. The producers’ interest in taking on the commitments connected to the use of the logo was verified, and where necessary problems and operational difficulties were tackled. It was decided, in agreement with Slow Food Switzerland, to postpone the entrance of some of the Presidia into the network. Some Presidia still have to establish an association and some producers must still bring some production steps in line with the protocol. A plan was made for these issues to be fixed during 2012.

Additionally, a system was defined for Slow Food to monitor the Presidia, to guarantee that the original characteristics of the project and various points of the protocol are being respected over time. Following the work carried out in 2011, seven projects were suspended, some of them new recommendations from recent months. Their problems arose from different sources: difficulty in organizing the producers, the need to improve production techniques to bring them more in line with tradition, the need to better define the Presidium’s objectives. These projects will be visited again and probably relaunched during 2012. Slow Food Switzerland, in collaboration with the Slow Food Foundation, organized a training meeting in Solothurn, on November 26, 2011, for the leaders of the Swiss convivia, to update them on the Slow Food Presidia project and the progress relating to the use of the brand. The main objective was to encourage the involvement of the members of Slow Food Switzerland, in order to improve and better coordinate biodiversity-protection work in Switzerland in the future. Favorable Opinion of the Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity The Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity, which has followed every step of the work outlined above and examined the final documentation of each individual Presidium, has given a positive evaluation to Slow Food Switzerland’s request to be able to use the brand. Request for Authorization from the International President’s Committee Slow Food Switzerland and the Slow Food Foundation therefore request the International President’s Committee’s official authorization for the use of the “Slow Food Presidium®” logo on the labels of Swiss Presidia products, as of the end of February 2012.

The Slow Food Presidia in Switzerland The 22 Swiss Presidia reflect a wide range of diverse environments, production types and traditional knowledge. They include native breeds, monumental trees and artisanal skills and gastronomic traditions that need to be preserved and passed on to future generations. They express the complexity of food production in this country, which, like the rest of Europe, is enduring spreading globalization and struggling with the difficulty of producing food according to tradition while respecting legal standards. Below are the product descriptions.

Switzerland Basel-Stadt Zurich

Basel-Landschaft Jura

Thurgau

22

17

Aargau

13

Zurich

4

Solothurn

18

Appenzell Ausserrhoden Appenzell Innerhoden St. Gallen

16

Zug

Lucerne

Neuchâtel

5

Bern

Obwalden

Svitto

9

Glarus

15

Nidwalden

1

3

Uri

Graubünden

Bern

Fribourg Vaud

21

11

14 2

12 Geneva

Geneva

Valais

20

19

6 Ticino

8

10

1 Alpziger 2 Bregaglia Valley Mascarplin/Mascarpel 3 Chur Sausage 4 Dörrbohnen 5 Emmentaler 6 Farina bóna 7 Furmagin da Cion 8 Locarno Valleys Cicitt 9 Mountain Pasture Sbrinz 10 Muggio Valley Zincarlin 11 Müstair Valley Rye Bread 12 Pays-d’Enhaut Chantzet 13 Raw Milk Butter 14 Raw Milk Vacherin Fribourgeois 15 Swiss Black Bee 16 Swiss Brenzerkirsch 17 Tafeljura Plum Orchards 18 Toggenburg Goat 19 Val Bedretto Pastefrolle cookies 20 Traditional Valais Rye Bread 21 Walnut Oil 22 Zurich Quince Paste

7

Alpziger Alpziger is a cow’s milk ricotta produced only in the Alpine pastures of central Switzerland, particularly in the cantons of Fribourg, Bern and Obwalden. The first references to its production can be found in a 12th-century Romansh dictionary, while Grafschaft Greyerz family documents from 1312 contain a more precise mention. Alpziger is made only in the summer, from the middle of June to the end of September, exclusively from the whey left over after making raw-milk cheeses like Sbrinz and Gruyère. The addition of some whole milk to the whey is optional and depends on the cheesemaker’s tradition. The production method is simple: The whey is heated to 90°C in special cauldrons, then citric or acetic acid is added. This lowers the whey’s pH, causing the previously dissolved proteins to coagulate and rise to the surface of the liquid. The mass is then cut, wrapped in cloths and left to drain for a few hours over the cauldron. After about a day of aging, the Ziger is ready to be eaten fresh, or it can be aged, and is sometimes smoked. The fresh ricotta is mostly used to fill cakes or breads. One classic recipe is for Zigerkrapfen, delicious little fried pastries filled with Ziger. The Presidium Very few cheesemakers in Switzerland still make Alpziger. The Presidium involves two of the last to follow this tradition. It is working to promote the product and convince other cheesemakers to revive the traditional mountain dairy production. The project’s first step is to try and increase the number of producers in the ricotta’s historic area, maintaining production in mountain dairies in the Swiss Alps. This should make it possible to have a reliable supply of quality Alpziger every summer, produced only by dairies that work with raw milk. Because it is a delicate and highly perishable product, and therefore not easily marketable on its own, the second phase of the project will involve artisans—bakers, pastry chefs and confectioners—to encourage them to use Presidium Alpziger to fill their specialties.

Production area Fribourg, Bern and Obwalden Alps Presidium supported by: Coop Switzerland Producers Fluonalp Thomas Schnider 6074 Giswil tel. +41 416751141 [email protected] www.fluonalp.ch Gerschnialp Anselm Töngi 6390 Engelberg tel. +41 416373929 [email protected] Baker Bäckerei Konditorei Cafè Stöckli Urs Dorfstrasse 3 6390 Engelberg tel. +41 416370750 [email protected]

Bregaglia Valley Mascarplin/Mascarpel In the tiny, beautiful and unspoilt Bregaglia Valley, in the Graubünden canton, a traditional ricotta-style cheese is made in the seven localities that are home to around 1,000 people. Called Mascarplin in the upper Bregaglia Valley and Mascarpel in the lower valley, the cheese is the same throughout the region and no one is sure why it is known by two slightly different names. It is very similar to the mascherpa ricotta produced in the nearby Valtellina Valley, situated just a few kilometers south in Italy, and the names mascherpa, mascarpa and mascarpin are used throughout the Italian region of Lombardy to indicate ricottas and similar cheeses, mostly made from cow’s milk whey mixed with a little goat’s milk. Just like in the Valtellina, here Mascarplin is not the main product of local herders. Small-scale cheesemakers produce a number of different cheeses and use the leftover whey to make Mascarplin. Milk from goats pastured on fallow land or in alpine meadows is used. The most common breeds are Camosciata delle Alpi, Grisons Striped, Grigia and Colomba, and for six to ten months every year they feed on meadow grasses and local hay. The milk is heated to a high temperature, above 90°C (194°F) before the cheesemaker adds what is known as the maestra, the whey left over from the previous day. Today, the fermentation process is helped along by adding a little citric acid, but in the past the cheesemakers would add dried and fermented fruits, berries or roots. The maestra triggers curdling, the thickening of the residual milk proteins. The curds are left to drain for around eight hours in small, perforated, cylindrical containers. The forms are then removed and dry-salted before being left to dry for a day in a cool, protected place (sometimes outside). The small forms, around 8-10 centimeters tall and 10 centimeters in diameter, weigh between 250 and 500 grams each. The cheeses should then be aged for at least two to three weeks, at which point they reach their best flavor and textural potential. Unfortunately the cheese is usually sold much earlier. Mascarplin was once aged for even longer periods, but it tends to develop a flavor that is too strong for modern palates. The Presidium Still today, all the valley families that keep even a few goats produce Mascarplin/Mascarpel at home. However, very few produce the ricotta to sell, so it’s availability on the market is extremely limited. The ricotta is produced from Easter to November when the goats are lactating, excluding periods when the milk is need for the young kids. A few of these families, each with no more than 30 goats, have joined together in a consortium. During the summer, they unite their goats into a single herd of around 200 animals, taking them to graze on alpine pastures on Alpe Cavlocc at 1,900 meters above sea level. Throughout the summer, a young cheesemaker from the valley, Minh Brunner, works in the stone buildings that house a production facility and retail shop. In addition to Mascarplin, he produces formaggelle, French-style goat’s cheeses and

other interesting cheeses. Everything is sold directly to tourists from the dairy or distributed to restaurants and shops in the valley. The Presidium wants to promote the hard work of local producers and preserve an ancient tradition at risk of disappearing. Production area: Bregaglia Valley, Graubünden canton Presidium Supported by Coop Switzerland Presidium Producers’ Coordinator Lucrezia Bischoff 7602 Casaccia +41 81 824 34 41 [email protected] Producers Cavlocc Alp Val Bregaglia Maloja tel. +41 79 32 95166 During the summer, Mascarplin from the Alpe Cavloc goat consortium made by Minh Bunner can be bought directly from the dairy. The consortium brings together the following farmers: Lucrezia and Duri Bischoff from Casaccia, Maria and Erwin Bühler from Soglio, Romana and Giampietro Gini from Soglio, Raffaella and Gian Radolf Giovanoli from Soglio, Ines Martinoli from Castasegna, Jolanda and Gianni Pedroni from Castasegna, Daniel and Aldo Petti from Vicosoprano, Daria and Elio Filisetti-Rezzoli from Stampa-Monaccio. Vreni and Fluri Cadurisch Bregaglia Valley Maloja Isola Village tel. +41 81 82 43484 Vreni and Fluri run their own mountain dairy and produce fresh Mascarplin.

Chur Sausage Known in German as Churer Beinwurst, this sausage comes from Chur, the capital of Graubünden, in the north of the canton. The town lies in the upper valley of the Rhine, at the foot of the mountains. The tradition of curing meats here dates back centuries, and products include many salami made from pure pork, or a mix of pork and game, and a distinctive dried beef. But the one with the longest history, passed down to the present day against the odds, is Beinwurst. It was mentioned as far back as the early 19th century, in an article by Heinrich Zschokke codifying the recipe. Beinwurst (“leg sausage”) was traditionally made from leftover cuts of pork, mostly the leg, and eaten directly on the farm. As it was made from less-prized meat, it was usually given to farm workers and laborers. Today some of these parts of the pig are no longer used, and the sausage is mostly made from back speck, neck fat and sometimes extremities like the tail. The meat is carefully trimmed of any tough parts that would make it hard to chew, then cut roughly with a knife and spiced with salt, pepper, nutmeg, coriander and cinnamon. The mixture is left to macerate in white wine for about a week. The wine used is Veltliner, characteristic of neighboring southern Austria and South Tyrol, but probably originally from Lombardy, brought north by the Romans and reaching Graubünden from the Valtellina, which explains the origin of its name. After maceration, the meat is used to fill beef casings and the sausages are arranged in a smoking room, where they stay at low temperatures for around eight hours, absorbing flavors from the beech and fir wood used for smoking. Once the sausages have been made, they last only a few weeks, and a month at the most. They are usually eaten after being cooked in boiling water. Cooking times vary depending on the size, from 1½ hours for sausages around 350 grams, up to 3 hours for those weighing 2 kilos or more. The Presidium Few people in and around Chur still make the sausage, which has been forgotten along with many other cured meats of humble origin. The two butchers who belong to the Presidium still sell it in their shops, and are trying to raise its profile among their customers and local restaurants. Following tradition, the sausages are made in the cold months, from October to March, when the pigs are slaughtered. All the pigs come from local farms and are selected from two small slaughterhouses near Chur. The tradition of fattening pigs in mountain pastures during the summer has continued in the canton, feeding them the whey leftover from mountain cheesemaking. The pigs raised in the mountains are slaughtered at the start of the season, while the farm-fattened animals are slaughtered in later months. The Presidium wants to promote this excellent sausage and its artisanal production, and to convince other butchers to revive the tradition.

Production area Chur and surroundings, Graubünden canton Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Producers’ coordinator Alois Schlager Hauptstrasse 64 7075 Churwalden tel. +41 813821139 [email protected] Producers Fleischtrocknerei Bischofberger Alois Schlager Hauptstrasse 64 7075 Churwalden tel. +41 813821139 [email protected] Metzgerei Mark Altstadtmetzgerei Obere Gasse 22 7000 Chur tel.+41 812523543 [email protected] www.metzegerei-mark.ch

Dörrbohnen In the German-speaking part of Switzerland, there is a long-standing tradition of drying fruits and vegetables. This practice became particularly prevalent during the Second World War when all available arable land was used to grow food for the nation, and it was essential to find ways to preserve it. Apples, pears, wild fruits, potatoes, beans and green beans were harvested while still firm, peeled and boiled before being dried and stored, providing an important source of vitamins and proteins for the long winter months. In the post-war period, green beans were one of the most popular vegetables. In the German-speaking cantons of Berne, Basel, Zurich, Solothurn, Schwyz and St Gallen, it was particularly common to harvest green beans and transform them into dörrbohnen (dried beans). Preparing dörrbohnen is simple and involves a slow drying process at a low temperature (below 30°C). The dry beans can be stored for as long as two years and must be soaked for a few hours before cooking. This traditional and natural preservation method enables tasty nutritious meals to be prepared at any time of the year and dörrbohnen appear in all sorts of dishes in the central and northern Swiss cuisine: from humble soups to the more refined Bernerplatte, a stew of beef and pork cuts or sausages, served with boiled vegetables. Presidium The recent industrialization of the drying process and introduction of higher-yield foreign hybrid bean varieties have put this old tradition at risk of disappearing. Furthermore, the cultivation of beans in German-speaking Switzerland is being progressively abandoned. Many beans available on the market today are imported, in particular from China. The Presidium brings together three growers, who cultivate traditional Swiss native varieties of green beans (such as Berner Landfrau, Saxa, Limka and Victoire) using organic methods, and two processors, who dry the beans in small artisan workshops. The Dörrbohnen Presidium has been formed to preserve the native bean varieties; support the continued cultivation of beans in Switzerland; promote artisan drying methods; and thereby protect the authenticity of the traditional regional recipes.

Production area Cantons of Berne, Basel, Zurich, Solothurn, Schwyz, St Gallen (German-speaking Switzerland) Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Presidium Coordinator Frühauf Urs und Christine tel. +41 0627541562 [email protected] Slow Food Presidium Coordinator Giuseppe Domeniconi tel. +41 562228915 [email protected] Producers Steinmann Joseph 6260 Reiden Erni Beat 6265 Roggliswi Achermann Thomas 6263 Richenthal Geiser Adolf 6265 roggliswi Richard Gerhard 4923 Wynau Biomanufkatur Grünboden Frühauf Urs und Christine 6264 Pfaffnau tel. +41 0627541562 [email protected] www.gruenboden.ch

Emmentaler Emmentaler takes its name from the Emme valley, in the Canton of Bern, where dairy production can be traced back to 12th century. This activity was supported by abundant pastures, pure, cool waters and the tradition of Kühwesen, a custom in which ownership of family farmhouses was passed to the youngest son, forcing the other brothers to leave the house and look for livelihood with cheese production. Under these conditions an important dairy production and cheese-making tradition developed, becoming a guarantee of artisanal expertise for such a “difficult” cheese like Emmentaler. The difficulty lies in the long and complex production technique, but also due to the large forms the Emmentaler is shaped into (often around 100 kg), which are very difficult to handle. From the second half of 19th century, Emmentaler began to be appreciated outside of its original region and to started to be exported all over in the world. As it often happens, its huge success led to a progressive standardization of production techniques and to the concentration of production into fewer and larger dairies. Luckily some small cheesemakers kept producing the cheese following the traditional rules, with milk coming from small local breeders twice a day (1200 litres for each form), used raw and full. The whey is inoculated and the curd heated at 32° C; then cut, cooked and put into shape. The forms are pressed and put into brine for a short period. Forms are then set in humid and warm chambers for at least three months, enabling the propionic fermentation responsible for the cheese’s trademark holes. The forms are finally aged in even more humid cellars where they finish maturation. The perfect aging must assure a bronze-colored and polished rind, a hard paste with regular and well defined holes, an intense nutty flavor with notes of butter and field flowers, and a persistent length in the mouth. The Presidium Despite the industrial standardization of Emmentaler in the past decades, a group of small-scale cheese makers decided to use only raw milk, as also prescribed by the DOP, from small local producers breeding cows in the pastures without the use of silage. The Slow Food Presidium was therefore created to support them. The Presidium of the traditional Emmentaler is concerned specifically with production in the valley of the Emme River - the original production area where some small dairies still exist on the hills. An important element for the Presidium is the prolonged aging: The cheese ages in natural cellars where expert affineurs (cheese agers) cure them for at least 12 months, developing a dark rind and a strong, harmonious taste. The cheese from the Presidium can be recognized by its black label and by its “Gotthelf” denomination. Currently the Presidium is composed of one dairy house, eleven milk producers and one affineur.

Production area Emme valley, Canton Bern Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Slow Food Presidium Coordinator Ernst Roth Tel. +41 (0)31 331 03 48 [email protected] Presidium Producers Coordinator Ernst Oettli Tel. +41 (0)71 688 42 48 [email protected] Producers Affineurs Ernst Oettli Gourmino AG CH-8574 Illighausen Tel. +41 (0)71 688 42 48 [email protected] - [email protected] www.gourmino.ch Cheesemaker Bernhard Meier Käserei Hüpfenboden Hüpfenboden 3555 Trubschachen i.E. Tel. +41 (0)34 402 13 12 [email protected] www.huepfenboden.ch Milk producers Brechbühl Bernhard Hüpfenboden CH-3555 Trubschachen Dubach Fritz und Hansueli Blapbachweidli CH-3555 Trubschachen

Schneeberger Urs Mittler Hegen CH-3555 Trubschachen Fankhauser Fritz Ober Hegen CH-3555 Trubschachen Fiechter Andreas Staubern 430 CH-3555 Trubschachen Gerber Jürg Vorder Scheidegg CH-3550 Langnau Haldemann Anna Lingummen 189 CH-3550 Langnau Niederhauser Christian Kadelmann CH-3536 Aeschau Röthlisberger Ernst Hinter Scheidegg CH-3550 Langnau Wyss Hans, Martin und Max Girsgrat CH-3536 Aeschau Zurflüh Hanspeter Farnern CH-3536 Aeschau

Farina bóna Farina bóna is a traditional product from Onsernone Valley, one of the poorest and most inaccessible parts of Canton Ticino, just a few kilometers from Locarno. This flour, obtained by finely grinding toasted corn (Zea mais), is distinctive for its use of toasted corn and very fine grinding using particularly smooth stones, such as ones still to be found in the dilapidated mill of Vergeletto, a Ticino village of just 90 inhabitants. In past times farina bóna supplemented the daily diet of people living in the valley and was mixed with milk, water or wine, but changing food habits after the Second World War progressively reduced its importance until production ended when the last miller in Onsernone Valley stopped working at the end of the 1960s. The origin of farina bóna is not known. Several old people in Vergeletto still remember farina sec’a (distinguished from the farina verda flour, ground without being toasted) which was produced by Signora Annunziata Terribilini, known as Nunzia (1883-1958), who toasted corn grains in a pan until they burst and went white, before grinding them. The ‘popcorn’ was called ghèl (rooster) as it resembled a white rooster’s comb. Farina bóna used to be eaten mixed with water or milk (hot or cold), and added blueberries, strawberries or wine, while now it is an ingredient in icecream, beer, breadsticks, cookies, mousse, cakes, spaetzle noodles, soups etc. The Presidium After the Onsernone Museum restored the Loco mill in 1991, various initiatives and research work revived memory of farina bóna and stimulated interest in resuming production. Work by a teacher and the Isorno school revealed further historical information. The Presidium’s objective is to promote Onsernone Valley farina bóna together with associated products and recipes, whether traditional or not: icecream, beer, cookies, spaetzle noodles etc. It is intended to encourage cultivation of corn in the valley and the reintroduction of traditional varieties. It is planned to restore old mills, adapting the Loco mill to produce farina bóna and renovating the four Vergeletto mills, which are connected through a single channel. One of these, Nunzia’s mill, will again grind farina bóna while toasting equipment will be installed in an adjoining workshop. Production of icecream, beer and other foods based on farina bóna will be started in the valley. A shop selling these products will be opened in Vergeletto. Support for local production of flour and its products will revitalize the economy of the area and help to promote tourism.

Production area Valle Onsernone, Canton Ticino Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Presidium coordinators Ilario Garbani 6654 Cavigliano Tel +41 91 796 29 67 [email protected] Meret Bissegger Casa Merogusto
 6713 Malvaglia
 Tel
+41 (0)91 870 13 07 Fax
+41 (0)78 605 10 07 cell. +41 (0) 91 870 13 00 [email protected] Producers Toasting and grinding Ilario Garbani 6654 Cavigliano Tel +41 91 796 29 67 [email protected] Onsernone Museum Marco Morgantini Mulino Meletta, 6661 Loco Valle Onsernone Tel +41 91 780 60 36 Tel +41 79 598 10 75

Furmagin da Cion The Poschiavo Valley, in the extreme south of the Graubünden canton, is very close to the Italian border. The impact on language and cuisine has been strong, and the local cured meats particularly reflect the Italian influence. In the local dialect, cion is pig and furmagin refers to a kind of meat pie. This curious name was perhaps used by locals because the pork was once baked in pots or the baking dishes used for cakes, giving it a round shape similar to a type of cheese called formaggetta. The most famous product from the Poschiavo Valley is Slinzega, a kind of bresaola made from beef or game, but the most traditional is Furmagin, once made by every rural family in the valley. It was traditionally eaten during the mazziglia, the pig slaughtering, at homes in the town of Poschiavo and its outlying hamlets. The recipe varied from family to family, but was always based on the less-prized cuts of meat, like neck, cheek, liver and belly, chopped up, spiced and baked in the oven. One butcher has continued making Furmagin for the last 20 years, following his father’s recipe. The meat from the neck, belly and other considered-inferior parts of the pig are mixed with a little pork fat and liver. After the pieces have been minced, they are mixed with onion, garlic, meat broth, local red wine and marjoram. The herb is one of Furmagin’s dominant flavors. The ingredients are mixed together slowly, by hand, until a uniform mass is obtained. This is shaped into patties which are wrapped in caul fat and baked in the oven for around 40 minutes at 180-200°C. As it cooks, the caul fat flavors and encloses the meat. Furmagin can be eaten hot, straight out of the oven, or cold, cut into slices and often accompanied by Poschiavo Valley ciambella, a traditional rye bread. The Presidium With the disappearance of the tradition of butchering pigs at home, the tradition of Furmagin is also being lost. The Presidium’s objective is to revive its production, and to promote the local farming of pigs, shortening the production chain. The Presidium has involved an organic farmer, who raises a few dozen Large White pigs from the spring until they reach 150-180 kilos. The pigs are slaughtered and butchered at a local slaughterhouse that uses the prized cuts for some cured meats and to sell fresh, while the lesser-prized parts are sold to the butcher to make Furmagin. The three Presidium producers intend to form an association and improve production, obtaining organic certification not just for the meat but also the final product.

Production area Poschiavo Valley, Graubünden canton Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Producers’ coordinator Sandro Marchesi 7745 Li Curt, St.Antonio tel. +41 818440267 - +41 786000267 [email protected] www.scalino.ch Farmer Reto Raselli Raselli organic farm 7743 Le Prese tel. +41 818440814 - +41 796114463 [email protected] www.bioraselli.ch Butcher Michele Branchi Macelleria Branchi Michele 7743 Brusio tel. +41 818347931 - +41 793124661 [email protected] Sandro Marchesi Macelleria Scalino 7745 Li Curt, St.Antonio tel. +41 818440267 - +41 786000267 [email protected] www.scalino.ch

Locarno Valleys Cicitt Cicitt are a long thin traditional goat sausage unique to the Locarno valleys in southern Switzerland’s Ticino Canton. Made from the meat, fat, hearts and intestines of local animals in late autumn, the sausage was most likely first created in Cavergno, a tiny village in the high Maggia Valley. Two of the few remaining producers can be found here and the local culture is still strongly linked to the Cicitt, with the annual festival of the Immaculate Conception called Festa del Cicitt. The history of the Cicitt is closely linked to the history of goat farming in the two Locarno valleys – Maggia and Verzasca. The animals were once known as “the cows of the poor” and almost every family kept some goats. Descriptions of the region from the 1950s indicate that they were in fact very widely kept domestically: “The villages were teeming with goats. They were all over the place, even on the roofs of the houses.” Most houses organized the mazza minore each November - the days dedicated to the slaughter of their goats and the production of Cicitt sausages. The first commercial production of the Cicitt appears to have been by the Dadò family from Cavergno at the beginning of the 20th century. During the winter season Giovanni Dadò produced the sausages with the assistance of his seven sons and a few employees. As production grew, Dadò started buying goats all year long from across the valley and as far as Locarno. Up to thirty goats were processed into sausages per day during the Cicitt season. During World War I production reached an “industrial” level and the sausages were sold across all of Switzerland. In his book about life in Maggia Valley, local author Plinio Marini remembers the intense odor of Cicitt wafting out of the post offices during the production season due to the numerous packages being sent around the country. The Dadò family stopped their Cicitt production in the 1950s. This marked the beginning of a steady decline of production all over the region. Today goats have lost their importance in the valleys’ local economies. There are still breeders in both valleys, and the demand for goat’s milk is quite high, but there are far too few “end of career” goats to produce a significant amount of Cicitt. Cicitt are dark brown in color and are typically roasted over an open fire. They have a strong goat flavor and aroma that is tempered perfectly by the contribution of spice, smoke and roasted notes. The Presidia Slow Food first began working to promote the traditional Cicitt sausage by listing it on the Ark of Taste, when it was discovered that while most of the sausage sold throughout Canton Ticino in the course of a year where called Cicitt, they had little to do with the traditional product. To try and appease the pallet of modern consumers, butchers started to add pork fat or meat to the sausages to give them a subtler goat flavor. The Presidium project has been created to ensure the continued production of Cicitt in the traditional manner. In this way, consumers can choose between the true Cicitt – made with goat meat and fat in the Locarno valleys

from animals raised in the Canton Ticino – or other sausages that may be produced locally and have their own good qualities, but are certainly not Cicitt. The Presidium brings together producers from the Locarno valleys who are proactively working to promote the traditional Cicitt sausage, increase farming of local goat breeds and support the construction of a slaughterhouse that would mean farmers could slaughter their animals locally. Production area Locarnese Valleys, Ticino Canton Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Presidium coordinator Meret Bissegger [email protected] Tel: +41 78 605 10 07 +41 91 870 13 00 Butchers Stefano Femminis Macelleria 6690 Cavergno 091 754 13 16 Fratelli Zanoli Macelleria 6672 Gordevio 091 753 10 47 Breeders Locarno Valleys Cicitt Producers Association Pietro Zanoli 6672 Gordevio Gilbert Yerly 6677 Moghegno Giorgio Speziale 6676 Bignasco Luigi Ernst 6694 Prato Sornico Vittorio Femminis Az. La Malüra 6690 Cavergno

Tiziano Maddalena 6672 Gordevio Elio Leoni 6683 Cerentino Pascal Favre El Gasg 6634 Brione Mariapia e Gabriele Giottonini Az. la Ghironda, 6633 Lavertezzo Fabiano Foletta Az. Lorentign 6635 Gerra Verzasca Sergio Torroni Az. Lobioi 6632 Vogorno Adriano Clericetti 6838 Muggio Renzo Boschetti e Matteo Minotti 6938 Vezio Annina Staub 6822 Arogno

Mountain Pasture Sbrinz One of Switzerland’s most famous cheeses, Sbrinz’s long history is thought to date back to Roman times. It is certain that is has been produced and sold as Sbrinz since 1530, the year in which Bern’s public record office reports the sale of a huge quantity of the cheese in Italy, carried south by caravan from the central Swiss town of Brienz, most probably the origin of the cheese’s name. Prior to this time the cheese was known as Schwyzer or Spalen and was commonly sold under around the country, traveling widely from the cheese’s homeland of central Switzerland. The well-trodden mule track through the high alpine passes of Grimsel and Gries, which arrives in Domodossola in northern Italy, is known as “Via Sbrinz” (www.sbrinz-route.ch). Production of Sbrinz is still concentrated in central Switzerland, in the cantons of Lucerne, Uri, Schwyz, Obwalden and Nidwalden, Zug and the Muri region in the Aargau canton. This area boasts Switzerland’s best Alpine dairies and pastures, and until the 19th century the cheese was made solely from mountain milk. With the opening of the first dairies in the valley, cheeesemakers discovered that production was cheaper and could be continued year-round. Today only ten of the 30plus dairies that currently produce Sbrinz AOC (a protected denomination of origin since 2002) still work in the mountains. Traditional production of Sbrinz starts by mixing raw milk from the evening milking with the morning milk, one of which is partially skimmed. The milk is processed in copper caldrons and curdled at a temperature of 32°C (90°F). The curd is broken with a tool called a lira (lyre), carefully reheated until it reaches a temperature between 54°C and 57°C (129-136°F), then firmly pressed into round molds. The Sbrinz forms are soaked in brine for 15 to 20 days, followed by an exudation phase and then an initial drying. This lasts for around four weeks, during which a natural film of grease forms on the cheese’s surface that is rubbed off with a cloth once a week. Sbrinz is traditionally aged vertically, on pine boards in cellars. The large cheese wheels are matured for at least 16 months and most are consumed at around 18-20 months; the distinctive spicy flavor takes a little longer to develop fully however, and Sbrinz AOC is matured for a minimum of 24 months. The extra-hard cheese is typically shaved into thin curls using a special slicer that is found commonly around Switzerland. The Presidium The Presidium project was established to promote high-quality production of Sbrinz, carried out exclusively in Alpine dairies during the summer. The production rules require a minimum maturation period of 30 months, the ideal time to allow the development of complex aromas and full-bodied spicy flavor. Presidium Sbrinz is made solely from raw cow’s milk, primarily from the Swiss Brown breed, obtained during the summer

months when the animals graze the best alpine pastures. During the winter season the cows are fed dry hay; the use of feeds and products using industrial seed-oils is forbidden by the AOC production protocol. The Presidium protects cheeses made from the milk of six mountain dairies (Geschnialp, Bleiki-Alp, Bergmatt-Stöckalp, Fluonalp, Alp Chünern, Untertrübsee-Alp). In accordance with tradition, aging takes place in cellars in the valley and the Sbrinz wheels are sold to specialized affineurs after four months, when they weigh around 43 kilos. The Presidium wants to raise the profile of this excellent cheese among consumers in Switzerland and elsewhere, distinguishing it from the mass of industrialized Sbrinz that dominates the market. Production area: Obwalden and Nidwalden cantons, central Switzerland Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Presidium coordinator Giuseppe Domeniconi tel. +41 562228915 [email protected] Producers Anselm Töngi Käserei Gerschnialp Alpenstrasse, 5 Engelberg tel. +41 41 6373929 [email protected] (Dairy code 6191) Paul Barmettler Alpkäserei Bleiki Oberdorf Huob tel +41 41 6205150 [email protected] (Dairy code 6192) Werner von Rotz Bergkäserei Stöckalp Weidli, 14 Melchtal tel. +41 41 6691322 - 41 6691285 (Dairy code 6197) Thomas Schnider Käserei Fluonalp

Grossteil-Giswil Chilchweg tel. +41 41 6752659 - +41 79 2601285 [email protected] www.fluonalp.ch (Dairy code 6201) Andreas Gut Käserei Alp Chunern Wiesenberg Witzig tel. +41 41 6282562 (Dairy code 6205) Thomas Scheuber-Durrer Alpkäserei Untertrubsee Ennetmoos Rotzbergstrasse, 5 tel. +41 41 6111076 - 41 6111074 - 41 6373671 (phone number in the mountains) [email protected] (Dairy code 6211)

Muggio Valley Zincarlìn Zincarlin is a ‘border’ cheese, produced in the mountains in both Italy, in the Lombardy region, and Switzerland, in Canton Ticino, around the border between Lake Lugano and Lake Como. On the Italian side a small production continues in the provinces of Como and Varese, but even if the name of the cheese is the same, the methods of production technique are different. Presidium Zincarlin is a raw-milk cheese produced on the Swiss side of the Generoso Mountains, in Canton Ticino. Its shape resembles an upturned cup and it weighs between 200 and 400 grams when fresh. Zincarlin is usually made from cow’s milk, but sometimes, small quantities of goat’s milk are also added. One of the distinctive features of the production process is that the curds are never broken: the curd obtained by lactic and rennet coagulation, is left to coagulate for 24 hours. In some cases, cheesemakers assist the whey to drain by making a crossshaped cut in the curd twelve hours after the rennet has been added to fresh milk. The curd is then hung in a cloth to drain for another day, until it reaches the right firmness. The draining time depends on the weather, and if the paste doesn’t reach the right consistency, it may be pressed for some hours. After draining, pepper and salt are added to the curds and then the cheeses are formed by hand. Zincarlin is eaten after a minimum two-month aging period. Aging is carried out in cool semi-underground cellars on the slopes of Mount Generoso. To avoid the growth of undesired moulds, the crust is treated with white wine and salt almost everyday. During the maturation period, the Zincarlin rinds turn reddish-gray and the cheese becomes soft and fatty and develops its complex and lengthy taste and aroma. The Presidium When this Presidium was established, matured Zincarlin could barely be found anymore. A lack of adequate structural facilities as well as the labor-intensive production process lead the Muggio Valley cheesemakers towards selling fresh cheeses almost exclusively. Thanks to the work of Slow Food Switzerland, the Zincarlin Presidium has recovered the traditional version of the cheese aged for at least two months, produced using raw milk and treated with white wine during aging. An aging facility has been identified in Salorino and an association to unite, develop and market the Zincarlin Presidium cheeses together with the dairies has been established with support from the Muggio Valley, Mara Valley and Salorino municipalities. However, production of Zincarlin is still scarce and it is necessary to involve more cheesemakers and to work to improve aging techniques, as well as to promote traditional Muggio Valley Zincarlin.

Production area Muggio Valley, Ticino Canton Presidium supported by Association of the Municipalities of Valle di Muggio, Val Mara and Salorino Region, Coop Switzerland Presidium Coordinator Luca Cavadini Tel. +41 91 6841816 [email protected] Cheesemakers and farmers Lorella Bricchetti 6837 Bruzella tel. +41 916841618 Marisa Clericetti Roncapiano, Monte Generoso 6838 Muggio tel. +41 916841370 - +41 916499067 Giuliano e Fiorenza Livi 6875 Casima tel. +41 916841536 Petro Geroso Grassa Alp Affineurs and retailers Zincarlin Sagl 6835 Morbio Superiore tel. +41 797313105 [email protected] www.zincarlin.valledimuggio.ch

Müstair Valley Rye Bread The widespread cultivation of rye in high-altitude Swiss valleys has had a significant influence on the diet of people living in the mountains, who have always eaten food based on the cereal. But in Val Müstair in the Swiss Canton of Graubünden, situated over the Ofen Pass near the Swiss National Park, the mild climate has also allowed wheat to be grown. As in other alpine valleys, rye bread was the traditional daily bread of the area for centuries, but here it is a lighter version with a soft floury crust and dark brown loaf, known as Paun sejel (sejel means rye in the Romansch language). Also known in Italy in its South Tyrolean version flavored with fennel seeds (Ur-Paarl, a Slow Food Presidium), Paun sejel consists of two flat loaves joined together along one side and is produced using 70% clear rye flour and 30% semi-white wheat flour. In the past Paun sejel used sourdough, like all types of rye bread, but unfortunately this is no longer the case. Paun bread uses a dough of mixed flour called biga, and is left to ferment for 6-8 hours, producing a soft, sticky, almost liquid mass, as happens when using rye flour. Without leaving the dough to ferment any longer, two handfuls are removed and placed side by side on a well-floured board to be shaped. The two shapes are then baked in the oven for half an hour at around 250° C, allowing the two loaves to merge together. Paun sejel is now eaten fresh, or 2 to 3 days after baking when it has slightly hardened and the sour rye flavors are more marked, but in the past it would be kept for weeks or even months by small farmers who stocked up by drying it. With the arrival of the first industrial bakeries and the disappearance of rye growing in Val Müstair in the second half of the 20th century, the original production of Paun sejel gradually began to fade away. But a few small farmers continued to bring flour to their village bakery once or twice a month to get their personal supply of bread made. At present there is only one baker in the whole valley who produces Val Müstair Paun sejel according to the traditional methods, using native Graubünden rye, exclusively mixed with Graubünden wheat flour in the traditional proportions. The Presidium The main objective of the Presidium is to support production of Paun sejel from Val Müstair and assure its future, but the overall project has a range of objectives. It particularly aims to promote the cultivation of native rye in the valley, along with local varieties of wheat, not only to eliminate long and expensive transport but also to enable the local mill to be used regularly. This would guarantee income for the millers, cereal growers and bakery which can continue to produce Paun sejel according to the traditional recipe.

Production area Müstair Valley, Graubünde Canton Presidium supported by COOP Switzerland Presidium Producers Coordinator Meinrad Meier tel. +41 818585116 [email protected] Slow Food Presidium Coordinator Ingeborg Fischer tel. +41 0787450961 [email protected] Cereal growers Johannes Fallet Döss 7537 Müstair Jon-Jachen Flura 7537 Müstair Rudolf Malgiaritta 7537 Müstair Mill manager Getreide und Mühle Hans Caspar Trepp Gran Alpin Postfach 7450 Tiefencastel tel. +41 816370307 [email protected] [email protected] Baker Meier Beck Bäckerei-Konditorei Meinrad Meier Sta. Maria, Val Müstair tel. +41 81 858 51 16 [email protected] www.meierbeck.ch

Pays-d’Enhaut Chantzet Pigs and cabbages have long been farmed in French-speaking Switzerland, and both are staples of the winter diet. Many traditional dishes combine this meat and vegetable, including several fresh and cured sausages, such as the Chantzet, a blood sausage made from pork and white cabbage. The ingredients are simple and natural: pork (mainly neck, fat and rind), fresh cabbage, fresh blood and spices. All the pork cuts, from the slaughter of local pigs, are cut into quite large pieces and the rind is prepared by boiled it without salt. White cabbage is grown locally and is used in many traditional recipes like soupe au choux (cabbage soup). The sausage is seasoned with nutmeg, marjoram, salt and pepper. The meat and cabbage are chopped and then mixed by hand with the blood and seasonings. A small press is used to fill natural casings with the mixture. The casings are stored dry, under salt, and rinsed in warm water before being filled. The casings may be from cows or pigs, if the right size can be found, and once filled, each Chantzet is hand-tied using natural string, creating four to five rings to create its typical U shape. Chantzet must be consumed within a week, or if vacuum-packed within 15 days. The sausage is only occasionally smoked, and almost always cold-smoked. It is common to simply let it rest for a night in the refrigerator and sell it the next day. Traditionally Chantzet is eaten boiled, on its own or paired with mashed potatoes or sautéed onions. The sausage has a dark garnet color, almost brown. The casing is easily cut, though the meat stays slightly attached to it. The meat is soft, with quite a coarse grain, and flavor of the pork and the seasonings is pleasantly balanced with marjoram at the fore. The Presidium Until 50 years ago Chantzet was made mostly by families with the help of the boucher de campagne, a farmer who would travel to households to help slaughter pigs for personal use. There are various types of traditional pork and cabbage sausages, but the only one still common today is saucisson aux choux (IGP), made from cooked cabbage. It is not made with blood and can be smoked. Different types of blood sausage and other traditional pork sausages have been gradually disappearing, together with the figure of the boucher de campagne. The Pays-d’Enhaut Chantzet Presidium has been set up in the Chateau d’Oex in the Canton Vaud, where two butchers have continued to make this fresh sausage according to the traditional recipe, using only local ingredients and processing them entirely by hand.

Production area Pays d’Enhaut, Vaud canton Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Slow Food Presidium Coordinator Alessandra Roversi tel. +41 796430743 [email protected] Presidium Coordinator Patrick Buchs Tel. +41 269247881 [email protected] Producers Boucherie Buchs Patrick Buchs Grand Rue 1660 Chateau-D’Oex tel. +41 26 924 78 [email protected] Boucherie Charcuterie Campagnarde de L’Etivaz Michel CombremontLe Devant 1660 L’Etivaz tel. +41 26 924 62 72 [email protected]

Raw Milk Butter Thanks to hygiene regulations and the dominance of industrial dairies, it is now almost impossible find high-quality butter made from raw milk in Switzerland. Even though butter is one of the staples of the local cuisine, the Swiss eat more and more industrial butter, which lacks fragrance and intensity and is not suited to raw consumption. The main problem is that these butters are produced using separated cream, cream that rises to the surface of the milk as it sits. This practice is common in all the dairies that make cheese from semi-skimmed milk, of which there are many in Switzerland. This allows for high-volume production, but the finished butter does not have the same characteristics as butter made from centrifuged cream, when the cream is obtained directly from the centrifugation of fresh whole milk. This is the technique used in the Presidium dairies. One of the dairies produces butter from soured cream and their own lactic cultures. Souring the cream using “homemade” cultures is very rare and requires a long process and great care and skill. The dairy’s butter-makers have been passing down the secrets of the technique for decades. The preparation of the cultures is the most delicate and fascinating part of the whole process. A liter of fresh raw whole milk is filtered and heated to 26-27°C (79-81°F), then put in an incubator for around 36 hours. The culture is then refrigerated overnight. The next morning one spoonful of the culture is used to inoculate a liter of fresh milk which is then put in the incubator for at least eight hours at 26°C (79°F). This process is repeated four or five times, until the culture is ready to be used for butter production. One liter of culture is added to 40 liters of raw cream centrifuged at 31°C (88°F). The mixture is left at room temperature for 24 hours and then put in cells at 3-4°C (37-39°F) for aging (two to four days) until it reaches the required acidity. Once the pH is correct, the cream is left at room temperature for two days so that the bacteria can slowly return to life. Finally, the butter is processed in the normal way. The Presidium The Presidium was created to protect and promote a rare product and its extraordinary production technique. Only a few small dairies who make their own cheeses, working outside of the PDO system, can periodically switch their production to raw-milk butter. The project brings together two dairies in northwestern Switzerland who use centrifuged cream to make high-quality butter. Their butter expresses all the scents and flavors of the northern Swiss pastures. It is made from organic and biodynamic milk from small-scale local farmers, processed into butter at least once a week, hand-kneaded and pressed into traditional wooden molds. The quality of the milk and its raw processing give it a slightly sour fragrance and a lingering flavor.

Production area Wernetshausen, Zürcher Oberland; Ganterschwil, St. Gallen canton Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Slow Food Presidium Coordinator Markus Baumgarten Tel. +41 443916512 [email protected] Producers Sennerei Bachtel Sennhüttenstrasse 13 CH 8342 Wernetshausen Hinwil Tel. +41 0438431220 [email protected] Melchior Schoch Käserei Berghof Aewil CH 9608 Ganterschwil Tel. +41 0719831572 [email protected]

Raw Milk Vacherin Fribourgeois Gruyère’s little brother Vacherin fribourgeois is a semi-hard and semi-cooked cheese made in the canton of Fribourg, not to be confused with vacherin Mont d’Or, a creamy, small cheese produced in the Jura region. It was first made as an upshot of the renowned Gruyère cheese production; when the amount of milk was insufficient at the beginning of summer alpine cheesemaking period to make the region’s most important cheese, it was used to make smaller wheels of vacherin. This “little brother” of Gruyère displays the same characteristics of the quality pastures and the skills of the local cheesemakers and is aged together with Gruyère in cellars, where they influence the qualities of each other. The name vacherin derives from the Latin vaccarinus, meaning the young assistant of the cowman in charge of the cheeses. In the 1950’s, hygiene concerns saw the increasing use of pasteurized milk in the production of vacherin fribourgeois. This resulted in the loss of traditional processes and knowledge and the impoverishment of the cheese’s defining sensory qualities. Production of the Presidium vacherin takes place in alpine dairies and begins by adding the morning milk to the milk from the previous evening and heating it over a wood fire. Following the usual procedures of curdling, breaking the curd, draining the whey and forming the cheeses, the more unusual delactosage technique of washing the curds takes place. This method, rarely used outside of the Netherlands, releases lactose and decreases the cheese’s acidity to give it an appealing sweetness. The wheels are matured for a minimum of three months to allow for the development of the unique flavor and its optimum texture. The cheese rind is typically grey-brown or red-brown in color, is washed, and has a wavy or even pleated surface. The cheese is soft and creamy, with a fruity and intense flavor that is sour and a little bitter. Vacherin fribourgeois is a perfect dessert cheese, but it is also used in the preparation of fondues, namely the fondue fribourgeoise. The Presidium Presidium producers use raw milk from their own cows in Alpine pastures, and if this is not possible it is sourced from local farmers living within five kilometer radius from the dairy. Today, of the 2,500 tons of vacherin fribourgeois DOP produced annually, only two percent is made with raw milk. The Presidium cheese are produced following traditional methods, including the important ‘curd washing’ and matured for at least three months to achieve optimum results that set them apart from their industrially produced counterparts.

Production area Canton of Fribourg Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Slow Food Presidium Coordinator Alessandra Rovesi tel. +41 (0)79 643 07 43 [email protected] Presidium Producers Coordinator François Raemy tel. +41 (26) 9198750 [email protected] Producers Coopérative fribourgeoise des producteurs de fromage d’alpage André Remy (Président) en Coppet 12 CH 1637 Charmey tel. +41(0) 269271523 - [email protected] Philippe Caille La laiterie CH 1776 Montagny la Ville tel. +41 (0) 26 660 18 84 [email protected] Michel Eggertswyler Laiterie de Belfaux Route du Centre 30 CH 1782 Belfaux tel. +41 (0) 26 475 26 01 [email protected] Marc-Henri Horner La fromagerie CH 1633 Marsens tel. +41 (0) 26 915 28 42

Swiss Black Bee The Swiss black bee (Apis mellifera mellifera), present in the country since the last Ice Age, has adapted perfectly to the climate and flora of the Alps and their foothills. Until a few generations ago, it was the only species found in central Europe, but it suffered a crisis in the 19th century when other bee populations were introduced to Switzerland, including the Carniolan bee (Apis mellifera carnica Pollman) from Austria and the Balkans and the Italian bee (Apis mellifera ligustica) from the Mediterranean. Their introduction immediately proved a mistake, because the species and their resulting hybrids showed a strange aggressiveness and adapted poorly to the area. The importation of other types of bee gradually fell, and today the problem does not come from the Italian bee, which is no longer raised by Swiss beekeepers, but from the Carniolan and the Buckfast (from Northern Europe), which are still present and whose morphological differences are not so evident. The distinctive feature of the black bee is the dark color on the back of the body, which helps the insect soak up warmth from the sun, even when its rays are weak. Unlike other types, the bee flies in cooler periods, even close to winter. It is tolerant of low temperatures and has a wide flying range, visiting a great variety of flowers from early morning until late evening. When pure-bred, the bee has a very placid nature. Feeding on nectar and pollen from a much larger number of flowers than normal, the black bee produces a honey rich in complexity, with an intense aroma and an especially balanced flavor. The honey is traditionally extracted in the spring to get the floral essences, and in the summer for the forest essences. Honey production does not continue beyond July; the beekeepers leave the rest of the harvest to the bees so they can build up their winter stocks. The Presidium After decades of decline, many beekeepers are now rediscovering this ancient and hardy bee, and are working to maintain its purity. Some years ago, the beekeepers, together with Pro Specie Rara (a non-profit organization dedicated to dedicated to the preservation of endangered domestic species) launched a project to revive the bee. In the 1990s, they joined together in the Black Bee Association, which now has over 300 members around Switzerland. Anyone who owns black bees can join the association, irrespective of the bees’ level of purity. The Presidium involves 12 beekeepers who have signed a production protocol and who have at least 75 percent genetically proven pure-bred black bees. These small-scale producers, who generally have between 6 and 30 families, sell their honey under a single label. The objective of the Presidium and the association is to safeguard the bee, creating protected zones for its pure-bred reproduction. This has already been done in the canton of Glarus, and protected regions will also be created in Sargans and the Val Müstair in the future.

Production area Central Switzerland Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Producers’ coordinator Balser Fried tel. +41 817831351 - +41 774503003 [email protected] Producers Renata Bott 7532 Tschierv tel. +41 818585296 [email protected] Markus Eberle 9300 Wittenbach tel. +41 712981435 [email protected] Emil Feurer 9470 Buchs tel. +41 817565209 [email protected] Balser Fried 9478 Azmoos tel. +41 817831351 [email protected] Ernst Hämerli 3234 Vinelz tel. +41 323381923 [email protected] Werner Hardegger 9473 Gams tel. +41 817711063 [email protected] Hanspeter Küng 7324 Vilters tel. +41 817233300 [email protected]

Hans Roth 6144 Zell tel. +41 9881274 [email protected] Karl Sochor 8049 Zürich tel. +41 443084080 [email protected] Werner Walker 9472 Grabs tel. +41 817713915 Emil Breitenmoser 9050 Appenzel tel. +41 717875653 [email protected]

Swiss Brenzerkirsch Swiss Brenzerkirsch is a cherry brandy, or ‘Kirsch’, typical of central and northwestern Switzerland. It is distilled from the small-medium sized sweet black cherries of a heritage variety known as Brenzerkirsch (Brenzer cherry), that grows through out the cantons of Basel-City, Basel-Country, Solothurn, Aargau, Lucerne, Schwyz and Zug on tall trees. This variety is not eaten fresh, and is cultivated solely for the distillation of the Kirsch, to which it gives its name. The spectrum of aromas characteristic of a high quality Kirsh, is in fact linked directly to the use of heritage variety cherries. The cherry harvest usually takes place in July when they are fully ripe. In preparing traditional kirsch it is essential that the whole fruit are pressed (without crushing the stones) on the same day of picking, to obtain the must. Following a fermentation period of at least two weeks, the distillation is carried out. The distillate obtained has an alcohol content of 70-80%, and is aged for at least one year in non-reactive containers (usually glass, steel or terracotta). Before bottling, the alcohol content of the final product is lowered to between 40-43 %, depending on the producer, by adding spring water or distilled de-ionized water. Traditional Swiss Brenzerkirsch has aromas of marzipan, almond, chocolate and cinnamon. It can be enjoyed neat as a digestive, is used in fondue and in cooking and baking, especially in traditional desserts like Zug cherry cake or the famous Basel Läckerli. The production of traditional Brenzerkirsch is seriously threatened today. Since 1990, the national kirsch has become vulnerable: a reduced duty on imported spirits and cherries, coupled with changes to the “fruit-based alcoholic beverages” category in order to have standard rules across the European Union, has caused a major decrease in the price paid for the fruit for distillation, making the production of Kirsch using cherries from the heritage varieties extremely unprofitable. The Presidium Currently the Presidium includes three distillers and about 30 farmers, who are united in the Hochstamm Suisse Association, and follow their guidelines created to support traditional orchards and the landscapes they preserve. The transition to growing modern varieties of cherries (lower trees) is relatively recent, so it is still possible to find the fruit needed to produce a traditional Kirsch. However, the heritage varieties are being increasingly abandoned. The Presidium aims to protect the Brenzerkirsch cherry orchards by promoting their continued production and working to ensure growers can receive a fair price for the labor intensive work of cultivating cherries on tall trees. If not, the trees will inevitably be abandoned in favor of varieties that are easier to manage. To raise awareness of the unique qualities of Swiss Brenzerkirsch, it will be important to promote the quality, identity and image of cherry distillates in Switzerland through exchanges between Presidium producers and distillers.

Production area Cantons of Basel-City, Basel-Country, Solothurn, Aargau, Lucerne, Schwyz and Zug Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Presidium Coordinators Lorenz Humbel Humbel Spezialitätenbrennerei Tel. +41 (0) 564965060 [email protected] Erich Wintsch Tel. +41 (0) 566410461 [email protected] Producers Hochstamm Suisse Association c/o Oekoskop, Gundeldinger Feld, Dornacherstrasse 192 4053 Basel Tel. +41 061 336 99 47 Fax +41 061 283 02 70
 [email protected] Distillers Lorenz Humbel Humbel Spezialitätenbrennerei Stetten Tel. +41 (0) 564965060 E-mail: [email protected] Toni Eberhard Arnold Dettling AG Brunnen Tel. +41 (0) 418202618 E-mail: [email protected] Hermann Röllin Bauernhofbrennerei Röllin Baar Tel. +41 (0) 417611159

Tafeljura Plum Orchards With its narrow valleys and flat expanses, the Tafeljura plateau of Basel-Country and Fricktal presents an attractive green setting for impressive rows of tall trees. Here the areas of open countryside have always grown cherry and cider apple trees, while in the damper areas along streams and on the valley floor, tall plum trees are cultivated. This distinctive cultural landscape is a legacy from ancient times when local peasant farming families still lived in a subsistence economy,. They did not cultivate the land with monocultures, but used grazing pastures (also producing hay for cattle) and orchards with tall trees. With the passage of time, thanks to this mixed use of the land, a very distinctive, almost unique landscape was created. Its beauty and environmental importance caused it to be included in the Swiss Federal Inventory of Landscapes (the inventory of the Federal Office for the Environment FOEN). The old orchards of the Swiss Tafeljura now risk disappearing, threatened by the introduction of new varieties of lower trees which require less attention and produce larger fruit than the native varieties (such as Hauszwetschge, Bühler and Fellenberg). The old Swiss plums, though having an intense aroma and juicy flesh, no longer have a market and the orchards are gradually becoming outdated. For this reason a Slow Food Presidium was created in the eastern part of Basel-Country. It promoted the Posamenter project, launched in 2005 by the Verein Erlebnisraum Tafeljura which aims to develop products based on ancient plum varieties, prepared following traditional recipes and artisan production methods. Various products based on dry plums have been developed, such as Posamentertörtli, a delicious plum cake, and Prune d’Or, an excellent chutney that goes well with meat pâté, roasts, stew meat, game or cheese. The Presidium This Presidium was set up to preserve and promote the unique landscape of the Tafeljura plum orchards. To ensure that the cultivation of ancient varieties of tall trees can be economically profitable, it is necessary to increase the volume of fruit sold by offering high quality transformed products. The project involves 20 growers and 11 transformers. The plums are cultivated by farmers from villages in the eastern part of Canton Basel-Country and Fricktal, who follow the guidelines of the Hochstamm Suisse Association.

Production area Tafeljura in the canton of Basel-Country and Fricktal Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Presidium Producers Coordinator Dora Meier Erlebnisraum Tafeljura Vordere Gasse 30 4493 Wenslingen +41 (0)61 991 06 86 +41 (0)79 578 8602 [email protected] Slow Food Presidium Coordinator Jürg Ewald Convivium Slow Food Basel Stadt und Land Tel +41 061 931 20 12 Fax +41 061 933 90 70 [email protected] Producers Erlebnisraum Tafeljura Association Dora Meier-Küpfer Postfach 4493 Wenslingen Tel./ Fax 061 993 91 88 [email protected] Hochstamm Suisse Association c/o Oekoskop, Gundeldinger Feld, Dornacherstrasse 192 4053 Basel
 Tel. +41 061 336 99 47 Fax +41 061 283 02 70
 [email protected] Marianne e Jürg Gysin Spielhof 4494 Oltingen Caroline e Erich Schweizer-Hirzel Juchweg 1 4463 Buus Samuel Gerber – Baumann Talweid 102 4446 Buckten Daniel Niklaus Dorfstrasse 9 4469 Anwil Vreni Wüthrich Hof Horn 4445 Häfelfingen

Käthi Schweingruber Mettenberg 126 4444 Rümlingen Paul Sutter Häfelfingerstr. 8 4495 Zeglingen Urs und Daniela Weiss Eigenried 36 4463 Buus Theres und Ernst Buess Wollstel 4495 Zeglingen Margrit Frank Rosenau 1 4462 Rickenbach Heidi Brunner Hof Hochhübel 4431 Benwil Stiftung Ökojob Sissacherstr. 20 4460 Gelterkinden Wohn und Werkheim Dietisberg 4448 Läufelfingen Backer Ernst Schmid-Pfeiffer Schmid Beck AG Hauptstrasse 58 4455 Zunzgen +41 61 971 51 51 Gabriela Jetzer Dornacherstrasse 67 4053 Basel +41 61 361 64 40 Michael Grogg Brändli AG Lindenhofstrasse 8 4052 Basel +41 61 271 57 10 [email protected] Butcher Stephan Furter Metzger Fluhmattweg 16 4207 Bretzwil

Toggenburg Goat For centuries, this breed of goat was the main source of income for the poorest families in the Toggenburg region and the neighboring region of Werdenberg, in the St. Gallen canton. This vast Alpine region is dominated by the rocky peaks of the Churfirsten chain, seven mountains over 2,000 meters high that overlook wide valleys rich in coniferous forests, streams and rivers. Traditionally all the goats from one village were united into a single herd, which was brought up to the Alpine pastures in the summer. The milk would be used to make cheeses which were distributed to the goat-owning families. The official selection of the breed dates to 1892, when the first examples were officially recognized. The Toggenburg goat has always been characterized by its adaptability and hardiness. Its strong ankles, a distinctive feature of the breed, allow it to graze on steep slopes, and its thick coat, varying from pale to reddish brown, protects it from the rain and cold temperatures. This makes it particularly suited to the changes in climate between the mountains and the lowlands. A goat of medium size, somewhat thickset, it has a broad chest and short white legs. Generally without horns, the head has short white ears, black in the center, and two long white stripes running from the eyes to the nostrils. In the Toggenburg and Werdenberg regions, the goats graze the whole summer in mountain pastures. In the winter they are kept in sheds where they can move freely, with high welfare standards. The goats produce excellent milk as well as a good yield of meat. According to SZZV, the Swiss goat-farming association, in 2006 there were around 850 Toggenburg goats in the Toggenburg and Werdenberg regions, out of 3,000 distributed around Switzerland. These numbers are small compared to the past: In the 1950s, there were over 20,000 animals. An association has been created to protect the breed, the Verein Ziegenfreunde, which unites all the owners of Toggenburg goats in the historic area. From May to September, 250 Toggenburg goats belonging to association members are collected by a coordinator and taken up to the Malschüel pasture, at 1,400 meters, where they graze along with a few hundred other goats under the supervision of two young herders. Every day the milk from the goats is turned into little cheeses in the mountain dairy. The Presidium The Presidium wants to promote this breed in its native area. Paradoxically, the breed risks dying out in its place of origin, while many Toggenburg goats are found in other regions and countries, including Italy and the UK. The Presidium supports the activity of the farmers’ association and is trying to safeguard the breed through the promotion of its products. A local butcher makes two sausages from Toggenburg goat meat, and the Alp Malschüel cheesemakers are working to produce a cheese made only from Toggenburg milk. Thanks to the promotion of these products, the farmers hope to increase the number of Toggenburg goats being farmed locally.

Production area Toggenburg region, St. Gallen canton Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Producers’ coordinator Sven Baumgartner Rheinhofstrasse 11 9465 Salez tel. +41 582282459 - +41 794317385 [email protected] www.lzsg.ch Slow Food Presidium coordinator Michael Higi tel. +41 718915416 [email protected] Farmers The Presidium farmers are united in an association: Verein Ziegenfreunde Rheinhofstrasse 11 9465 Salez tel. +41 582282459 [email protected] Butchers Roland and Karin Preisig 9633 Bächli-Hemberg tel. +41 713771184 [email protected] www.preisig.metzg.ch

Traditional Valais Rye Bread Rye is the preeminent cereal in the mountain valleys of the European Alps: it is much more robust than other cereals, and has always easily adapted to the harsh climate and high altitude, making it a staple food in the diet of mountain people for many centuries. In the Swiss Canton of Valais, wheat was rarely seen and was very expensive, becoming a luxury product. Instead people ate a sourdough rye bread, often produced by “diluting” the dough with inferior quality ingredients such as chaff. Considered a “poor people’s bread”, Valais rye bread used to be in everyone’s house, while now it is almost impossible to find anywhere in the Canton. The last baker still making it according to the traditional recipe lives in Simplondorf, a village with no more than 360 inhabitants. The baker, Urs Arnold, is the fourth generation to ply his trade: he learned everything from his mother, and is now passing everything on to his son. He bakes bread six days a week and jealously guards not so much the simple ancient recipe as his sourdough starter, the “Chef”. The traditional recipe for Valais rye bread only uses flour of pure fine rye bran, water (sourced from the valley) and salt. These ingredients are then mixed with the Chef—which constitutes 10% of the final volume—until a homogenous nonsticky mass is obtained, and then left for at least 12 hours (possibly rising to 15 or 18) when it doubles in volume. An essential factor in the process, the Arnold family’s Chef has been handed down through at least four generations. Its perfect microbiological equilibrium gives acidity to the dough and a very long life to the bread (as long as a few months). This was crucially important in these alpine regions where the communal oven would only be fired 2 or 3 times a year Before dividing the dough into the various sizes (500, 700, 1000 or 1500 grams), a part is removed to be used as the starter dough for the next bread-making session. After raising, the molds are put in the oven at a temperature of 230-250˚C and baked for about one and a half hours. The resulting bread is very compact, golden brown in color and with a slightly flattened conical shape. It has a thick crisp crust, while the inner part of the loaf is grey-brown, moist and with a distinctly sour taste. Valais rye bread, which is kept in a cloth napkin, is perfect with dried meat or cheese, also with sweet foods. The Presidium Traditional Valais rye bread enjoys PDO status, but the PDO rules permit the addition of wheat flour (up to 10%) and beer yeast, allowing faster and easier preparation. This results in a bread with a less complex flavor which is different to the traditional bread, particularly in its texture and storability. The aim of the Slow Food Presidium is to support and promote the artisan production of traditional Valais rye bread produced with 100% rye bran which is finely ground and mixed exclusively with sourdough starter.

The Presidium is assisting the entire production chain, enabling the use of old mill stones at the mill in Blatten, near Naters, where the rye for Presidium bread is finely ground, and in the future it may also be possible to revive other old stone grinding mills in the Valais. Production area Canton of Valais Presidium supported by COOP Switzerland Presidium coordinator Bernhard Augsburger Rhonemühle 3904 Naters Tel. +41/27/922.16.61. Fax +41/27/922.16.69. [email protected] www.rhonemuehle.ch Producers Mill manager Bernhard Augsburger Rhonemühle 3904 Naters Tel. +41 279221661 Fax +41 279221669 [email protected] www.rhonemuehle.ch Baker Urs Arnold Bäckerei Arnold Simplon-Dorf Tel. +41 027 979 11 25

Val Bedretto Pastefrolle Cookies The pastefrolle (shortcrust) cookies made in Bedretto Valley in the north of Ticino Canton have been a tradition here since at least the mid-19th century. In this poor region, which was exclusively agricultural in the past and experienced a massive emigration, sweet foods were only prepared for special occasions, such as religious festivals and village fairs. Until the 1990s a historic bakery in the valley jealously guarded the recipe and continued to produce the authentic version of the cookies: thin, in the shape of an “S”, golden in color, crumbly and with an intense buttery flavor. When the bakery closed down, the cookies also disappeared. In 1999 the hotelier Paul Forni, who used to buy the cookies for his guests to enjoy with their afternoon tea, decided to revive this ancient tradition and produce the Val Bedretto pastefrolle cookies himself. After trialing recipes to find the right ingredients and method, as well as designing and creating suitable molds, he has been producing the cookies commercially since 2004. The flour used is a mixture of stone-ground Ticino wheat flours: the eggs come from three Canton Ticino farms; and the butter is produced in the local Gotthard dairy. The sugar is the only ingredient that comes from outside Ticino, but it is a Swiss product. The cookies are baked for about twenty minutes at 180-200 before being cooled, packaged and labeled. These last two operations are managed with the help of young people from the Diamante Foundation, an institution involved in projects to integrate disabled persons into society. The Presidium The pastefrolle cookies produced in the Bedretto Valley disappeared when a local bakery closed down suddenly, but they remained alive in the memory of the local families. Hotelier Paul Forni has revived this tradition today with assistance from the young people of the Diamante Foundation, and is now able to supply a number of pastry shops, hotels and restaurants in Canton Ticino with traditional pastefrolle cookies made from local ingredients. The Presidium has several objectives: to find a new production premises and return the cookies to their area of origin (Val Bedretto); to establish rules of production in order to guarantee the quality and traditional features of the recipe; and to involve more producers, so these cookies can be once again enjoyed by local families and sold on the market in their most authentic form.

Production area Bellinzona, Canton Ticino. Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Presidium Producers Coordinator Paul Forni 6702 Claro 079 620 40 60 [email protected] Producers Paul Forni Swisscookies di P. Forni Via San Gottardo 34 6532 Castione In Matro 8 (ufficio amministativo) 6702 Claro Tel. +41 79 620 40 60 
 Fax. +41 91 863 46 56 
 [email protected] Diamante Foundation Via Ronchetto 7
 CP 4030
6904 Lugano

 Tel. +41 091 972 86 86
 Fax +41 091 972 92 82

 [email protected] www.f-diamante.ch

Walnut Oil In some parts of the Alps—Valle d’Aosta, the French Rhône Alps and the northwestern Swiss cantons—the extraction of walnut oil is still common practice today. This reflects the widespread tradition of producing plant-based oils other than olive oil, characteristic of the countries north of the Alps. These oils were cheaper than butter, and the use of walnut oil in the kitchen has a long history. Known and appreciated by the Romans, during the Middle Ages it was used as both a food and a lamp fuel. One of the oldest surviving mentions of cooking with walnut oil in Switzerland dates back to the 16th century. The documents are stored in the archives of the city of Neuchâtel, in the French-speaking canton of the same name, one of the oil’s historic production areas. The documents describe two types of walnut oil: a small production of cold-pressed oil used by nobles, and a hot-pressed oil destined for lower social classes and the production of medicines. The hot extraction produced higher yields and gave the oil a pleasant toasted, fruity note. For these reasons it became the only production technique common in Switzerland in the early 20th century and later between the two wars. After the Second World War the consumption of walnut oil fell dramatically, as food technology brought cheap butter, margarine and other vegetable oils to the market. The cultivation of walnuts and the laborious harvesting, drying and shelling of the nuts were abandoned by farmers, surviving only as a marginal, supplementary activity for families. Currently the production of hot-pressed walnut oil is carried out by a few mills, dotted around the cantons of Vaud, Bern, Solothurn, Aargau and Zurich. The dried nuts are picked over, shelled, ground and then baked in the mill’s wood-fired oven at a temperature over 120°C. The ground nuts are stirred continuously for 30 minutes, so that they cook evenly. The resulting mass is then wrapped in two cloths, an internal one made from cotton or polythene and an external one of jute, and placed in a press. During the pressing, the external layer of jute holds a little of the pressed oil and ensures its slow release. The extracted oil is very aromatic, with pronounced toasted notes. The mass that remains inside the press, the nillon, is dried and used as a flour to make cakes, or further pressed to make a crunchy sweet given to children. The Presidium Walnut cultivation is no longer considered a profitable agricultural activity. Many walnut groves have been abandoned for years, and only a few families continue to tend their own trees. Safeguarding the production of oil allowed the revival of some cultivation in the Vaud canton, where the tradition is still very strong. A few thousand walnut trees have been replanted, and Switzerland’s most important extraction mill is active here. The canton of Vaud produces 90 percent of all of the country’s walnut oil, but the tradition has also survived in the neighboring cantons, where the mills process small quantities for the local population or for family consumption. The walnuts for the oil are grown by individuals or small-scale local growers.

The Presidium wants to support this activity, informing consumers about this centuries-old tradition, to safeguard the walnut trees and keep this local economy alive. Production area Vaud, Bern, Solothurn, Aargau and Zurich cantons Presidium supported by Coop Switzerland Producers’ coordinator Bovey et Fils 1141 Severy tel. +41 218003333 [email protected] Slow Food Presidium coordinator Alessandra Roversi tel. +41 796430743 [email protected] Producers Bovey et Fils Moulin-Huilerie de Severy 1141 Severy tel. +41 218003333 [email protected]

Zurich Quince Paste This confection of quinces and sugar is typical of the canton of Zurich and surrounding areas, but is known and eaten in much of the rest of the country. An ancient recipe for Quittenpästli (the German for “quince paste”) can be found in a 1751 cookbook, but the product was already being mentioned in documents from the 16th century written by a famous doctor from Basel, who praised the quince paste’s nutritional properties. In Zurich it is considered a typical Christmas sweet. Each family has its own traditional recipe, but artisans use the version in the cookbook written by Lina Rytz in 1835. The main ingredient is quinces, once commonly grown throughout German-speaking Switzerland, their trees an essential element of the hilly landscape. In the past, as now, the quince trees were not officially cultivated, but used as ornamental trees in gardens and parks, their fruits picked to make jams and sweets. To make the quince paste, the fruits are peeled, deseeded and cut into cubes. The cubes are soaked in water overnight. The next morning the liquid is strained off and can be used to make fragrant jellies. The quince cubes are meanwhile combined with an equal quantity of sugar and cooked for several hours, stirring constantly, until they break down into a smooth paste. The paste is then dried for several days before being cut and sprinkled with sugar. The final product is orange in color, with a gummy consistency and a characteristic tart flavor. The Presidium The Presidium unites two confectioners from the Zurich area who are still following the traditional recipe. The Presidium protocol specifies that only quinces from the Zurich countryside can be used. In fact one of the project’s aims is to protect the landscape, which is still characterized by quince trees. The second phase will involve the selection and distribution of some historic quince varieties from the Zurich area.

Production area Zurich canton Presidium supported by: Coop Switzerland Producers Mischa Klaus Confiserie Cafè Klaus Marktgasse 17 8180 Bülach tel. +41 44 860 07 44 [email protected] www.klaus.ch Raphael Stadelmann Vier Linden Holzofenbäckerei Freierstrasse 50 8032 Zürich tel.+ 41 44 268 88 22 [email protected] www.vierlinden.ch Stiftung St.Jakob Leo Peterhans Kanzleistrasse 18 8004 Zürich tel. +41 44 295 93 46 [email protected] www.st-jakob.ch

For more information: Giuseppe Domeniconi Slow Food Switzerland tel. +41 562228915 [email protected] Alessandro Ferri Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity tel. +39 0172 419649 [email protected]

www.slowfoodfoundation.org www.slowfood.ch www.presidislowfood.it