The Casertana is a

breed A breed is a specific group of domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist several slig ...

of domestic

pig The pig (''Sus domesticus''), often called swine, hog, or domestic pig when distinguishing from other members of the genus '' Sus'', is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is variously considered a subspecies of ''Sus s ...

from

Campania Campania (, also , , , ) is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islands and the i ...

, in southern Italy. It is mainly associated with the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

Caserta Caserta () is the capital of the province of Caserta in the Campania region of Italy. It is an important agricultural, commercial, and industrial ''comune'' and city. Caserta is located on the edge of the Campanian plain at the foot of the Camp ...

, from which its name derives, but was in the past also raised in the provinces of

Campobasso Campobasso (, ; nap, label= Campobassan, Cambuàsce ) is a city and ''comune'' in southern Italy, the capital of the region of Molise and of the province of Campobasso. It is located in the high basin of the Biferno river, surrounded by Sann ...

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

and

Salerno Salerno (, , ; nap, label= Salernitano, Saliernë, ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' in Campania (southwestern Italy) and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after ...

. The area of the lower basin of the Garigliano and

Volturno The Volturno (ancient Latin name Volturnus, from ''volvere'', to roll) is a river in south-central Italy. Geography It rises in the Abruzzese central Apennines of Samnium near Castel San Vincenzo (province of Isernia, Molise) and flows southeas ...

rivers, including the comuni of

Carinola Carinola is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Caserta in the Italian region Campania, located c. northwest of Naples, c. northwest of Caserta, and c. southeast of Rome. Carinola borders the following municipalities: Falciano del ...

Mondragone Mondragone (Neapolitan language, Campanian: ) is a ''comune'' or municipality in the Province of Caserta in the Italy, Italian region of Campania. It is located about northwest of Naples and about west of Caserta. History In the Middle Ages, it ...

, Minturno,

Sessa Aurunca Sessa Aurunca is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Caserta, Campania, southern Italy. It is located on the south west slope of the extinct volcano of Roccamonfina, by rail west north west of Caserta and east of Formia. It is situated o ...

and

Teano Teano ( Teanese: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Caserta, Campania, southern Italy, northwest of Caserta on the main line to Rome from Naples. It stands at the southeast foot of an extinct volcano, Rocca Monfina. Its St. Clement's ...

, was particularly known for production of the breed, which may also be known as the Teanese after the town of Teano. The Casertana has two unusual physical traits: it is virtually or totally hairless, which gives rise to its alternative name Pelatella, "hairless one"; and it has two wattles or cylindrical appendages hanging from the lower part of the throat. It is one of the six autochthonous pig breeds recognised by the

Ministero delle Politiche Agricole Alimentari e Forestali The Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies, it, Ministero delle Politiche Agricole, Alimentari e Forestali, italic=no or MiPAAF, is an Italian government department. It was formed in 1946 as the Ministero dell'Agricoltura e delle F ...

, the Italian ministry of agriculture and forestry.

History

The Casertana was in the past numerous and widely distributed in Italy. According to a census taken in 1942, there were more than 50,000 head in the province of Caserta alone. As with other indigenous Italian pig breeds, numbers fell sharply in the second part of the twentieth century, and the Casertana came close to extinction. A herdbook was established in 2001, and is kept by the Associazione Nazionale Allevatori Suini, the Italian national association of pig breeders. The population remains low: at the end of 2007 it was 594, and conservation status of the breed was listed as "critical" by the FAO. At the end of 2012 there were 403 pigs registered.

References

Pig breeds originating in Italy Italian products with protected designation of origin {{Pig-stub