Meat
Tarentaise
C tier
Tarentaise is a solid wheat-to-blond dual-purpose cattle breed from the Tarentaise valley of the French Alps (Savoie), selected for milk used in Beaufort and other mountain cheeses as well as for sturdy beef conformation. Meat is moderately marbled, fine textured, and mild when animals are finished after alpine grazing, reflecting thrifty mountain genetics and dairy-beef frames. Pure Tarentaise herds remain important in Savoie and have been exported to North America and elsewhere for dairy, beef, and crossbreeding on tough terrain. Cull cows and dairy-beef calves supply regional French and specialty export beef markets.
Track this ingredient
Characteristics
Preparations
Traits
Grading systems
Grades are placed along a shared scale so systems can be compared side by side.
History
Blond mountain cattle of the Tarentaise valley supported alpine dairy and draught farming in Savoie.
A breed standard and early herd records established Tarentaise as a distinct Savoyard dual-purpose type.
Alpine dairy cooperatives linked Tarentaise milk to high-altitude hard cheese production including Beaufort.
North American importations used Tarentaise for maternal hardiness and moderate beef carcasses on range.
PDO cheese systems reinforced purebred Tarentaise herds in the French northern Alps.
Dual-purpose selection balanced milk solids with beef value in mountain production systems.