A symbol of Italy around the world, Prosciutto di San Daniele is one of the great Italian gastronomic delicacies. It is a cured, raw prosciutto and is made according to strict rules set out by the Product Specification that cover every step of the process carried out in the prosciutto factories and all the players in the production chain.
Prosciutto di San Daniele is a completely natural product, only two raw materials are used in its production, both of Italian origin: hand-picked pork legs and sea salt. As stipulated by the Product Specification, the pigs must meet certain breed, weight, and diet standards. They are fed with quality cereals and whey and come from farms spread across ten specific Italian regions. Furthermore, Prosciutto di San Daniele does not contain additives or preservatives of any kind.
There is a unique and unparalleled third ingredient that is crucial to the production of San Daniele PDO: the San Daniele del Friuli air The climate that characterises this town in the province of Udine, located in the centre of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, creates the optimum conditions for ageing the prosciutto. It is here that the breezes rising up from the Adriatic Sea meet the winds blowing down from the Carnic Alps, in a land where temperature and humidity are regulated by the waters of the Tagliamento river, which lap against the city of San Daniele del Friuli as they flow from the north to the south of the region.
Aged for a minimum of four hundred days and thanks to its high nutritional value and easy digestibility, Prosciutto di San Daniele is suitable for any kind of diet, whether for athletes, children, the elderly, or those on low-calorie diets. In fact, San Daniele PDO is an excellent source of complete proteins and monounsaturated fats (i.e. those good for your health), as well as vitamins, B1, B3 and B6 in particular, and minerals, mainly phosphorous, zinc and potassium.
Its organoleptic characteristics are also equally important. Visually, Prosciutto di San Daniele is characterised by the pinkish-red colour of the lean meat and the pure white marbling of the surrounding and intramuscular fat. To the nose, the aroma must be delicate and, at the same time, have the typical toasted nuances of bread crust, malted barley, and nuts. Finally, in the mouth, the slice is soft, non-greasy and melts in the mouth, releasing the flavour and the characteristic notes of cured meat.
Recognised since 1970 by the Italian State, with law no. 507, as a Designation of Origin product, and by the European Union as a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) product in 1996, Prosciutto di San Daniele stands out for its typical guitar shape and the presence of the trotter, useful not only for keeping the biological integrity of the leg intact, but also for helping to drain away the moisture and thus facilitating the ageing.
These are the elements that make Prosciutto di San Daniele a delicacy that is enjoyed both in Italy and the rest of the world: in fact, some of the biggest consumers outside of Italian borders are, for example, France, the United States, Poland, Austria, the Netherlands, Canada, and Brazil.
The Prosciutto di San Daniele Consortium is entrusted with protecting the brand and the eponymous prosciutto itself. Founded in 1961 through the will of a group of producers, entrepreneurs, and other prominent personalities in the San Daniele del Friuli community, it groups together the thirty-one factories that, exclusively in the Friulian town, are authorised to produce San Daniele PDO.
