CHARACTERISTICS AND PRODUCTION

The Grey Alpine/Grigio Alpina breed is an indigenous breed of the Alpine arc. The present breed dates back to strains and sub-breeds present in the 19th century on the southern side of the central Alps, particularly in some valleys of South Tyrol and Trentino. It is in particular the sub-breeds of the Val Passiria, Val Senales, Val Sarentino, Valle di Fassa and Valle di Fiemme that have merged into the current Grigio Alpina breed. Today it is still mainly bred in the provinces of Bolzano and Trento although it is widespread throughout the country. The activity of the selection programme, implemented since 1981, has led to the valorisation and consolidation of a uniform and characteristic genotype, in its own right, called the ‘Grigio Alpina’ breed.

The Grey Alpine/Grigio Alpina is a dual-purpose breed for milk and meat. This typical mountain cattle breed is frugal, adaptable and long-lived. With a robust constitution, it is characterised by its particular grazing ability and resilience.
All in all, it is a problem-free breed of cattle that enables the economic utilisation of the farm’s own forage areas, which in mountain areas also include alpine pastures and grazing land.

CHARACTERISTICS

The Grey Alpine/Grigio Alpina is of medium size and weight. The coat is a light silver color with shades on the head, neck, shoulders, flanks, thighs and limbs. The muzzle and claws are slate grey; the eyes are large and bright; the horns are fine, white at the base and black at the tip, pointing upwards.
They possess a correct locomotor apparatus with particularly strong claws.
The adult females have a body weight of 550 to 650 kg and a height at the withers of between 130 and 137 cm. The adult bulls have a body weight of 900-1,000 kg and a height at the withers of between 138 and 147 cm.
The calves are born with a light reddish coat and a birth weight of 35-40 kg.

MILK

The milk of the Grey Alpine/Grigio Alpina is of excellent quality and is suitable both for fresh consumption and for processing into high-quality products (cheese, butter, yoghurt, etc.). Among the mountain cattle breeds in Italy, the grey cattle breed has the best ratio in terms of milk quantity and quality (fat and protein) and therefore guarantees a higher yield for processing into quality products.
The milk yield is over 5,300 kg milk with a very good fat and protein content. . Measured against the average body weight and the natural feeding and husbandry conditions in the mountain region, this performance can be rated as very good.

MEAT

The Grey Alpine has excellent meat quality, which is characterised by a fine marbling. The fattening ability of young bulls should be emphasised. With a daily weight gain of around 1,300 grams, they reach a live weight of approx. 500 kg at the age of 12 months with a slaughter yield of 55%. Female cattle are also particularly valued due to their good muscling and meat body quality.

TABLE WITH PRODUCTION DATA

closed lactations

milk kg

fat %

proteins %

Primiparous animals

63

2883

3,48

3,38

Second calving

57

3163

3,48

3,28

Third calving or more

149

3154

3,48

3,3

All

269

3092

3,48

3,31