Breeding Farms
Our animals
The land surrounding our commercial farm has become oasis of life thanks to our commitment to recovering an abandoned land. Now this space is used for our breeding farms of hens, cows and other animals that accompany our daily life in Agrisalus. With 18000 square metres of land at our disposal, we make sure that we constantly harrow the land in order to facilitate its renewal and use it on a rotational basis, thereby preventing its deterioration. Thanks to this commitment, we have injected new life into a portion of earth, creating a healthy and vital environment for our animals.
Feeding and sustainability
Our cows are fed with mown hay from our mountain meadows and local by-products of the human food industry. In this way, the animals play an essential environmental role because they are able to restore value to poor or waste by-products by limiting the deprivation of land that could otherwise be cultivated for human consumption.
A fundamental choice also concerns bovine emissions of co2 precursors, co-responsible for global warming (methane, ammonia, nitrous oxide):
Recent studies have shown that dietary supplementation of natural minerals such as zeolite and bentonite halve bovine methane emission and cancel ammonia and nitrous oxide production, giving an important short- and long-term benefit on global warming.
All the farm is completely energetically self-sufficient thanks to our photovoltaic system with integrated storage.
Breeding management
The welfare of our cows is ensured by a low density of
breeding, open spaces, constant grazing and natural feeding. These factors
reduce milk production but increase the well-being and longevity of the
animals. Our stable, which would normally be filled with 25 animals, will contain a maximum of 12 to preserve the health, quality and longevity of our animals.
Weaning calves
The traditional system involves the immediate separation of the cow-calf pair to safeguard saleable milk production, while the calf is weaned alone with artificial milk.
At agrisalus, calves remain with their mother and their peers in a very gradual separation system avoiding stress for mothers and calves. In this way, we safeguard the well-being of the couple, encouraging the expression of all the typical behaviours such as play and social interaction. In this natural system we clearly have to make do with a smaller quantity of milk in order to safeguard animal welfare, customising the system to the specific character needs of each cow-calf pair.
Well-being of animals
Come and find out how we take care of our animals to ensure their physical and psychological well-being.
This allows us to bring fresh, natural and genuine products to the table to be enjoyed in company, aware as we are of having respected the natural lifecycle of both animals and environment.
Cows
In the Agrisalus breeding farms, you can see our cows and discover how they are raised and cared for. Thanks to them, we offer a large variety of dairy products, such as cheeses, butter and yoghurt, all of them homemade with their milk. We are happy to offer cooking labs and tastings to spread knowledge of the flavours and traditions of our land.
Pigs
Pigs are an essential part of our family. They play a fundamental role in our production process, as they allow us to manage in a sustainable fashion the by-products of milk processing, such as whey, which would otherwise be considered special waste. Thanks to pigs, we are capable of making internal use of whey, transforming it into precious nutrients without creating any negative impacts on the environment. In this way, a virtuous cycle is completed within our production chain.
Moreover, thanks to snuffling they allow us to curb weeds and reforestation, thus contributing to the maintenance of the land.
Hens
We also have a breeding farm of hens, and through laboratories our guests can discover the secrets of how to care for and raise these animals, collect eggs and prepare typical dishes based on fresh eggs. In addition, we organise interactive activities for the little ones by involving them in everyday activities.
Our hens are raised in open spaces, where they can fulfil part of their nutritional needs directly from the ground. This has a positive effect even on the eggs they produce, which contain a lower quantity of hypercholesterolemic saturated fatty acids. This characteristic is particularly evident in the grey-blue shelled eggs.
Discover the guided tours
Come and discover the secrets of milk and cheese production on our farm campsite in Arco. You will be able to live a unique and authentic experience, taking part in all the production phases of our artisan cheese factory. You will have the chance to see our animals up close and understand the progress from milking to the creation of our exquisite products.
At the end, you can taste our products born out of the love for nature and the local territory.
The activity is aimed at a group of 3 to 10 people and lasts about an hour. It is available on the following days: Saturday and Sunday (meeting at 10.30am or in the months of July and August also at 4.30pm).
The cost is €30 for adults, €20 for children under 14 and free from 0 to 3 years (tasting included in the price).
Welcome
Upon your arrival at Agrisalus, you will be able to breathe an air of nature, simplicity and relaxation. Lorenzo will be there to welcome you; he is the heart of Agrisalus and will be the one to accompany you along this path of discovery and wonder. You will inevitably find yourself captivated by his passion and enthusiasm.
You will have a chance to explore the farm campsite, the cheese factory and the breeding farms ,and will be able to experience up close the cheese production processes and the animal care, concerning which Lorenzo is a real expert, and you can ask him any question you want.
Breeding Farms
Upon arriving in Agrisalus, your attention will be caught by our animals. As they are of fundamental importance for the various activities we perform at our farm campsite, their well-being represents an absolute priority for us. Lorenzo, who is a veterinary as well, makes sure that all the animals receive the right care and have suitable spaces available to them. Every day, moreover, he dedicates his commitment to ensuring their complete well-being and helps us creating increasingly tastier and more genuine products.
During your visit, you will also get the opportunity to take part in animal care and pose any question you want. Lorenzo will be extremely happy to reply and you might then find it hard to make him stop.
Cheese factory
It is here that the production process of our best products officially starts: cheeses, yoghurt, creams and even ice creams. This place represents the paradise of dairy products, where next to our cheesemaker Giulia you can witness the various production phases and discover the methods, tools and ingredients we use to bestow tastiness on our products.
The visit to our cheese factory will be an experience of discovery of tradition, craftsmanship and exquisiteness, during which you will have the chance to unearth the secrets handed over generation after generation across the territory and the people who inhabit it and work every day with passion
to make it special.
Tasting
We know by experience that guests come out of the cheese factory hungry, which is why we have scheduled a break, a moment of relaxation and food. Finally, having already unveiled all the secrets of production, you can savour our products, and as you eat them, you will feel all the flavours of the Trentino territory, nature and tradition.
This is usually the favourite part of every visit: at last, we can eat and drink something together relishing the beauty of the nature around our farm campsite (included in the price).
Shop
We are certain that you will love the taste of our products, so much so that you will want to take them home after the tasting. After discovering the secrets of our production and tasting the wholesomeness of our cheeses, you will be inevitably tempted to relish them again and you will find all of them available for purchase at our shop.
Cheeses, yoghurt, cured meats, puddings and even ice cream whatever you may desire will be there, within your reach. And after that, come on… will you not take something for your relatives, too?
Final greetings
All goods things come to an end sooner or later, and at this point our visit will be over. After throwing another glance at our lovely landscape you can go back home with your belly full, plenty of delicacies and, above all, the memory of a wonderful experience steeped in nature and tradition. Now, however, turn this dream into a reality, and book your visit to our farm campsite in Arco.