The year 2010 came to an end with no sign of a crisis. This at least was the case for the producers of that famous ham, the PDO-marked “Prosciutto di San Daniele”. This Friuli-based Consortium, consisting of about twenty companies, registered a new sales record last year. With the economy going through a difficult period, the decision was made to focus increasingly on quality. The total number of hams produced remained constant (2,750,000), while the turnover reached 335 million Euros. The most positive signs were from the export trade, which showed strong growth with respect to 2009 in all the main markets outside the EU, achieving an overall rise of +21%. The following sales figures for San Daniele ham are particularly impressive: in the USA +18%, Australia +1%, Japan +22%, Canada +142%, and Switzerland +18% compared to 2009. Within Europe, sales were up 10%: with particular success in France, Germany and the UK. For two years from 2011, the Consortium will be implementing a series of promotional initiatives in Great Britain, Russia and the USA, to underpin and increase sales of San Daniele hams in those particular markets.

San Daniele prosciutto ham is still produced as it was in the past, employing a procedure which owes more to historical tradition than to pure artisanship. Indeed, technology and innovation are harnessed to assist organization and transportation, and to help with the more mechanical aspects of production, but the essential technique has remained constant over time. San Daniele prosciutto is therefore a traditional product, and the flavour and organic properties of the ham are preserved and protected due to the unchanging nature of the manufacturing process and the particular origin of the raw ingredients. It is this production method which lends the ham its special sweetness and tenderness, as well as its unmistakable aroma.

To ensure this special result, guaranteed by PDO certification, there are a host of conditions which have to be observed. Above all, the pigs which are used to produce San Daniele ham must come from just ten Italian regions, where they must be born, raised and slaughtered: Friuli Venezia Giulia, Veneto, Lombardy, Emilia Romagna, Piedmont, Tuscany, Umbria, the Marche, Lazio and Abruzzo. They have to belong to certain traditional genotypes (the Large White and Landrace breeds), possibly crossed with the Duroc breed or interbred in some way, but still satisfying the requirements established by the National Genealogical Manual for the “heavyweight Italian pig”. The pigs have to be raised in the traditional manner and fed a particular diet, and cannot be slaughtered before the age of nine months. After butchering the pork hams cannot be frozen, but must be used fresh, entering the processing system within 120 hours. They must also obey certain strict conditions with respect to weight, fat content, colour, consistency, and method of cutting. Every ham has to be stamped and given an identification code, so that the fresh hams all arrive at the processing centre with clear documentation, and stamped with the names of both the breeder and the butcher. At this point a series of further strict tests are made, after which the real production process can begin. It starts with the salting of the ham, and proceeds through another eight distinct phases to the final aging. This lasts for not less than 13 months, but is also dependent on the original size of the ham. With the processing complete, the hams are evaluated once more to ensure they conform to the necessary standards. They can then enter the distribution chain, to be sold and eaten at tables all over the world.