Master Food Identity: Sensory Analysis. Salame Piacentino DOP

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1 Master Food Identity: Sensory Analysis Salame Piacentino DOP Student: Laura Natalia Fernández Cedi February 10,

2 CONTENTS Description of the Salame Piacentini DOP... 3 Description of the geographical area... 5 Varieties and identification of Salame Piacentino DOP... 6 Description of the main sensorial characteristics... 8 SWOT analysis: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats... 9 References

3 DESCRIPTION OF THE SALAME PIACENTINI DOP The pig farming has existed since the year 4000 BC when the Chinese people started with its domestication. In Europe, the feeding with pork meat seems to be very ancient thanks to the easy farming and the important content of fat and tasty meat. Prehistoric findings of pig bones mixed with other animal bones have been dug out in terramare, between Montata dell Orto (Caorso) and Castelnuovo Fogliani (Alseno) in the area of Piacenza. Also for the Romans, the pig seemed to be appreciated as it is shown by a small pig shaped charm that was found (Piacenza Food Valley, 2012). The Salame Piacentino DOP is a cold cut product of a cylindrical form. It is obtained from the meat of pork that corresponds to the characteristics indicated in the specifications. This product can have a fat percentage from 10 to 30% according to the lean side in the meat. For the lean, it is not possible to use the meat coming from the head, while for the fat it is possible to use lard, throat and parts of bacon without soft fat (Scansani, 2007a). The process of production of Salame Piacentini DOP is as follows: 1. The pork lean and fat parts are cut into small pieces and passed through the mincer with large holes of more than 10 mm of diameter. 2. The obtained meat is then seasoned with the mixture of spices and preservatives shown in table 1. Table 1. Mixture of salt, spices and preservatives (Scansani, 2007b). Ingredient Minimum Maximum Sodium chloride 1,5 kg 3,5 kg Potassium nitrate 15 g Black or White pepper in grains or in powder 30 g 50 g Infusion of garlic and wine Sugar Sodium L-ascorbate 500 g, garlic (from 5 to 20 g) wine (from 0,1 to 0,5 liter) 1,5 kg 200 g 3

4 3. The salted meat is filled into natural pork casing, tied up and punctured throughout the gut. 4. The subsequent drying phase is done at a temperature between 15 and 25 C and a relative humidity between 40 and 90 %. 5. The maturation of the hung products is done over at least 45 days at a temperature between 12 and 19 C and a relative humidity between 70 and 90%. 6. The final weight of the product is between 400 g and 1 kg and it has a cylindrical shape (figure 1). Figure 1. Salame Piacentino DOP The physicochemical characteristics per 100 g of product are shown in table 2. Table 2. Physicochemical characteristics of Salame Piacentino DOP Ingredient Min Max Humidity (%) Protein (%) 23,5 33,5 Fat (%) Salt (%) 3 5 Ash (%) 4 6,5 Collagen (%) 0,5 4 ph 5,4 6,5 4

5 DESCRIPTION OF THE GEOGRAPHICAL AREA The territory of Piacenza has the particularity of a humid and continental weather with a narrow temperature range that makes it the perfect place for pig farming and manufacturing of cured pork meats. The pigs are fattened in a balanced way thanks to the temperate climate, the woodlands and the high amount of water in the area at the expense of the direct sunlight. The temperature plays an important role in the firmness of fat; the colder it is the less weight gained by the pigs and the softer the fat becomes. The geographical area of production of the Salame Piacentino DOP includes the complete territory of the province of Piacenza with a total surface of 2.589,47 sq. km and it is limited to areas of an altitude less than 900 m (figure 2 and the red colored part in the Italy map). The meat used must come from pigs born and raised exclusively in Emilia-Romagna and Lombardy (figure 3). These pigs must be older than 9 months and weigh 160 kg (with a 10% margin of tolerance (Official Journal of European Union, 2010). Since 1998 the market of the DOP meat products has increased. From the total salame production in 2000, the Salame Piacentino DOP represented 40%, whereas in 2006 it increased to 75%. The total amount of whole and sliced Salame increased from to 1 million pieces from 2000 to 2006 (Scansani, 2007a). For this reason there are a lot of qualified manufacturers working on an industrial basis. But even if technologies advance, the different stages of production are made in the traditional way followed by generations, which makes that this product keeps its quality over time. The number of producers of the three typical cured pork meat products from Piacenza, coppa, salame and pancetta, is 19, being all part of the Consortium for the Protection of Piacenza Typical Cured Pork Meat Products, established in These 19 producers work according to the rules and regulations of the traditional manufacturing process for the three DOP registered by the EU in Brussels (Piacenza Food Valley, 2012). From the 19 producers, by 2007, 15 had the product certification. The total amount of certified products by 2007 was whole and sliced pieces. The price of the salame went from 7,40 to 9,00 for the price of production in the company 5

6 production including IVA to 12,00 to 14,00 for the price of the direct sale. From the total pieces sold in 2007, 75% were sold in modern distribution, 16% in traditional retail and 3% in direct sales. Figure 2. Province of Piacenza Figure 3. Red: Piacenza; beige: Lombardy; pink: Emilia Romagna (includes Piacenza). VARIETIES AND IDENTIFICATION OF SALAME PIACENTINO DOP According to specifications of the Salame Piacentino DOP, to have the denomination, the maturation time must be of at least 45 days. After this time, it is up to the producers to increase the time in order to have a product with different sensory characteristics. So, there are, for example Salame Piacentino DOP aging 60 and 75 days. The DOP certification makes the products easily recognizable as a sign of quality by the consumers and it is a tool to protect the producers against fraud. The DOP certification for the Salame Piacentino is given to the products made from cured pork meat that satisfy the conditions of the regulations established by the Consortium for the Protection of Piacenza Typical Cured 6

7 Pork Meat Products (Regulation EC 510/2006). The control of the regulation is made by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry. Each Salame DOP and the accomplishment of the specifications, that includes all the phases of the chain, from the raising to the labeling, are controlled by the ECEPA (Certification Institution of Agricultural and Food Products), that works in collaboration with experts and professors from the Catholic University of Piacenza (Scansani, 2007a). Each piece of salame is numbered to make it possible to track down the production batch and even the pig from which the meat was taken. After this they are branded with the European Union DOP logo, shown in figure 4. Then the products are branded with the logo of the Consortium: a cornucopia full of salami and a coat of arms on a red background that recalls the coat of arms of Cardinal Giulio Alberoni. In the label there must be specified the product as Salame Piacentino Protected Designation of Origin together with the letters DOP certified by the Ministry of Agriculture. The name of the company in Piacenza must also be shown in the label. Figure 4. Label of Salame Piacentino DOP 7

8 DESCRIPTION OF THE MAIN SENSORIAL CHARACTERISTICS After doing the sensory analysis of the Salame Piaentino DOP the quantitative descriptors are shown in table 3. The saturation of the color refers to the red color of the slice; the uniformity of the color as the absence of zones of significantly clearer or darker color in the entire slice; the sealing of the slice is taken as the capacity of the meat to keep tied; the olfactory intensity is the immediate impact in the nose, that is normally intense. The spices smelt are of garlic, especially; the strange odors may be like mold, rancid, putrid, gut, etc. The different sensorial characteristics that have been observed in the Salame Piacentino DOP are showed in table 3: Table 3. Sensorial characteristics of the Salame Piacentino DOP Visual aspect Olfactory Gustative Retrolfactive evaluation Saturation of the Olfactory Softness Spices color of the lean intensity Uniformity of the Spices Salty Garlic color White saturation Fresh meat Sweet Meat of the fat Size of the lards Strange odors Acid Fermentation aromas Sealing of the Bitter Aromatic slice persistence 8

9 SWOT ANALYSIS: STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, OPPORTUNITIES AND THREATS The SWOT analysis made for the Salame Piacentino DOP is shown in table 4 (ISMEA, 2006). Table 4. SWOT analysis for the Salame Piacentino DOP Strengths - Efficient quality control system - Perceptible distinctive quality - 100% guarantee of the Italian origin - Protection of the region and of the local producers - Easy traceability thanks to the origin and to the controls Opportunities - Exportation to other European countries and to non EU countries - Valorization of Italian products in respect to foreigners. - Providing more information about the meat increases the propensity of acquisition Weaknesses - The consumers are not very well informed about the importance of DOP sign and the quality that it offers - The consumers have known the product by many years but not for having the DOP label - The DOP label does not guarantee the taste of the product - The DOP label is not the most determinant thing to buy the product - Higher prices than same products with no DOP Threats - Similar products of lower price - Competition from other countries - The consumption of pork meat is decreasing 9

10 REFERENCES - European Comission Agricultural and Rural Development Salame Piacentino DOP. Available online in: February 7, ISMEA (Istituto di servizi per il mercato agricolo alimentare) I prodotti DOP, IGP e STG L evoluzione della normativa, i dati economici e le tendenze di mercato in alcuni paesi UE. Available online in: %20L%E2%80%99evoluzione%20della%20normativa%2C%20i%20dati%20economici% 20e%20le%20tendenze%20di%20mercato%20in%20alcuni%20paesi%20&source=web& cd=2&ved=0cdeqfjab&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.ismea.it%2fflex%2ffiles%2fd.2e b666286e7b3f%2Fprodotti_dop_igp_stg.pdf&ei=Se8yT_neCYPm4QTw7cT6BA&usg=AF QjCNGOOztxH2DXlNqBclI_m83vgBkzvw. February 8, Piacenza Food Valley Consulted online in: January 31, Scansani, A., 2007a. L analisi sensoriale dei Salumi Piacentini DOP. Strumento per la valorizzazionee la valutazione della rispondenza alla tipicita. Consorzio Salumi Tipici Piacentini. - Scansani, A., 2007b. Dispensa didattica L analisi sensoriale dei Salumi Piacentini DOP. Strumento per la valorizzazionee la valutazione della rispondenza alla tipicita. Consorzio Salumi Tipici Piacentini. 10