Farm “Pian del Lares” by Carraro Flavio

Farm characteristics

The breeding of dairy goats was started by Desiderio Carraro in 1980, who in 1995 also started agritourism as a complementary element of livestock production. From 2006 the company is BIO certified. Since 2019, Flavio has taken over the management of the farm. Since 2017 the farm has been part of the Slow Food Lombardy project “Comunità del Cibo SOPRALAPANCA”, which aims to produce a raw milk lactic fermentation cheese “CAPRACANTA” with self-produced ferments with respect for animal welfare.

Location – The company is located on the right side of the Veddasca valley at an altitude of 1,030 m. The total agricultural area is 300 ha. The areas surrounding the farm consist of 15 ha of permanent meadows used for both haymaking (a cut) and grazing. The grazing and alpine pasture area covers about 80 hectares at an altitude between 1200 and 1500 meters, with the alp center located in Monterecchio. The remainder consists of wooded and uncultivated areas. The surfaces currently used on grass-pasture are the result in a constant recovery of former abandoned and degraded grasslands. The continuous and combined grazing of the goats and the cattle herd has also made it possible to recover to fodder use the abandoned areas (former pastures) placed at the highest altitudes. In the pasture area there are buildings for the containment of the garments and for their milking. There are also cellars for the maturation and aging of cheeses.

Bred animals – Currently about 100 goats in lactation are bred, of which 50 of Verzasca breed, 40 of the breed Camosciata of the Alps and about ten mestizo animals. In addition, Rendena dairy cattle are bred for a total of 15 lactation animals, pigs and low-court animals.

The production system – Production is based on the direct processing of milk in the farm dairy and on the processing of meat (slaughterhouse and company laboratory). Dairy production is very diversified and is characterized by raw milk processing. The most marketed products are both goat’s milk-only cheeses such as Formaggella del Luinese (DOP) and milk-based cheeses and mixed milk cheeses. The production of sausages is very varied, the typical goat salamini, the goat violin (ham), the traditional pork salami and more prevail. The marketing of the products takes place directly (short supply chain) both through the farm and the farm shop and through the local and specialized markets.

Goat herd management system – The most characteristic element is the practice of grazing both in the grassy areas adjacent to the farm and in the alpine area. The grazing season in climate trends range from April to December. Initially, the areas close to the farm are used and then, from June, they pass through the alpine pasture areas and return to the farm areas at the beginning of November for the preparation of the parturitions. In the middle of the vegetative phase the flock remains grazing on average for 10-12 hours per day. As summer temperatures rise, we move from daytime grazing to evening-night grazing with flock exit after late afternoon milking and return for morning milking. Concentrates consisting of a mix of feed plus raw materials (grain corn and barley) are used as a complement to the use of pasture and hay. In the stall phase (winter and early spring) hay makes up 60% of the ration, supplemented with about 800 grams of concentrates per day (mix).
In the grazing and grazing phase, the quantities of hay and concentrates gradually decrease. Hay is used only as a relief food in case of adverse climatic conditions and the concentrate is reduced to 200 grams head/day of cereals to supplement the protein intakes given by pasture.
The average production of the flock over the entire lactation is about 400 kg of milk per head.

Contacts Us

Via Ingegnere Petrolo 18, 21061 Maccagno con Pino e Veddasca, (Varese)

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