"Lard d'Arnad", a product with a Denomination of Protected Origin (DOP) is made only from shoulder of pork. The pigs, weighing over 200 kilos, come from farms in Aosta Valley, Piedmont, Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna and Veneto.

 

First cleaned of fat and then cut into squares, the lard is placed to mature in "doils"; these ancient chestnut or oak vats are filled by alternating layers of lard with a mixture of salt, water, spices, natural flavours and aromatic mountain herbs.

 

The lard is left to mature for at least 3 months. It is during this process that the product takes on its distinguishing fragrance and much-admired taste. Each white slice is slightly pink in the centre and may have a surface vein of meat. "Valle d'Aosta Lard d'Arnad DOP" is sold either vacuum-packed in various sizes or diced and preserved in glass jars.