Game is a prized meat, with important nutritional and taste values, and with great potential in economic and employment terms. To make the most of it, however, it is necessary to develop a certified supply chain of wild meat throughout the national territory, which leads the product from the forest to the table, following all the necessary health and legal steps. This is the focus of the “Wild and Good” project presented today during the last day of Terra Madre - Salone del Gusto. The project is curated by the University of Gastronomic Sciences of Pollenzo in collaboration with the Department of Veterinary Medicine of the University of Milan and the Italian Society of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, and is supported by the UNA Onlus Foundation.
The event, held in the stand of the University of Pollenzo, was attended by Maurizio Zipponi, president of the scientific committee of the UNA Foundation, Silvio Barbero, vice president of the University of Gastronomic Sciences of Pollenzo and Luca Pellicioli, referent of the Selvatici e Buoni project. "Game meat can be naturally defined as organic - said Silvio Barbero - because the animal is born and grows in nature not undergoing pharmacological treatments, nor feeding on processed food. Wild red meat, therefore, is qualitatively superior to other meats, especially beef and pork reared with intensive methods, with more protein, less fat, and high antioxidant value thanks to the rich percentages of Omega 3 and Omega 6. The our project - continues Barbero - aims to enhance these important nutritional qualities by inserting wild meat within a certified and traceable supply chain ”.
Unfortunately today only 66% of the game meat produced in Italy is self-consumed - replied Maurizio Zipponi, Scientific Director of the UNA Onlus Foundation - without therefore bringing economic or occupational value. With this project, we at UNA want to give new impetus to those territories that could have great benefits from the correct management of bushmeat. Wild and good - Zipponi concluded - it not only favors the promotion of Italian taste excellence but aims to create new economic initiatives and jobs, opposing poaching and the black market for meat with a certified, transparent and legal supply chain ”.
A project that is being successfully tested in the Bergamo area as described by the referent Luca Pellicioli: "In the 10 months of development of Selvatici e Buoni in the province of Bergamo, various actions were carried out foreseen by the project including the training of the hunting world on the correct treatment of the meat of big game, also with the support of the butchers, and the collection of data for the definition of the health and historical-cultural aspects related to the consumption of game. The world of catering was also involved with the organization of guided tastings during the summer in restaurants in the city of Bergamo, the Seriana valley and the Scalve valley, attended by over 250 people, including many tourists. My thanks go to all of them - concluded Pellicioli - which I extend to local institutions and stakeholders who have believed in and actively participated in this project since the beginning, seizing the great opportunity to enhance the Bergamo area and its wildlife heritage ".
La UNA Onlus Foundation (Man, Nature, Environment) was born from the comparison between the environmental, agricultural, hunting, scientific and academic world, to make a qualitative leap in the protection and management of nature. This synergy has materialized in projects dedicated to the protection and enhancement of biodiversity. It is a real cultural change that connects ideas and projects in which the traditional values of the communities, the protection of the territory and ecological activities become a new way of human action, finally in balance with the evolution of nature.