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Buffalo mozzarella

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Buffalo mozzarella
Other namesMozzarella di bufala (Italian), muzzarella 'e vufera (Neapolitan)
Country of origin
Italy
RegionCampania
Source of milk
Italian Mediterranean buffalo
TextureFresh
CertificationMozzarella di bufala campana:
Italy: Denominazione di origine: 1993
EU: PDO: 1996
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Buffalo mozzarella

Buffalo mozzarella (Italian: mozzarella di bufala; Neapolitan: muzzarella 'e vufera) is a mozzarella made from the milk of the Italian Mediterranean buffalo. A fresh, soft pasta filata cheese, it is traditionally produced in Campania, particularly in the provinces of Caserta and Salerno.[1]

Since 1996,[2] mozzarella di bufala campana is also registered as an EU and UK protected designation of origin (PDO) product. The protected designation requires that it be produced according to a traditional recipe in selected areas of Campania, southern Lazio, northern Apulia, and the Molise town of Venafro.[3][4]

In 2024 the producers' consortium certified an output of 55,718 tonnes of mozzarella di bufala campana PDO,[5] roughly 40% of which was exported, with France as the leading foreign market.[6] With a turnover of more than half a billion euros, it is the fourth Italian PDO product by production value, after Grana Padano, Parmigiano Reggiano, and prosciutto di Parma.[7]

Areas of production

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Buffalo cow

In Italy, the cheese is produced nationwide using Italian Mediterranean buffalo milk under the government's official name mozzarella di latte di bufala because Italian buffalo are found in all Italian regions.[citation needed] The mozzarella di bufala campana, which has denominazione di origine protetta status, is produced only within a defined area which includes: in Campania, the whole of the province of Caserta and of the province of Salerno, and parts of those of Benevento and Naples; in Lazio, parts of the provinces of Frosinone, Latina and Rome; in Molise, part of the comune of Venafro; and in Puglia, part of the province of Foggia.[8] Buffalo mozzarella is a €300m ($330m) per year industry in Italy, which produces around 33,000 tonnes of it every year, with 16 percent sold abroad (mostly in the European Union). France and Germany are the main importers, but sales to Japan and Russia are growing.[9]

Apart from in Italy, its birthplace, buffalo mozzarella is manufactured in many other countries around the world. There are producers in Switzerland,[10] the United States,[11][12][13][14] Australia,[15] Mexico, Brazil, Canada, China,[16] Japan, Venezuela, Argentina, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Spain, Sweden,[17] Colombia,[18] Thailand,[19] Israel, Egypt,[20] India,[21] and South Africa,[22] all using milk from their own herds of water buffaloes.

Mozzarella di bufala campana

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Buffalo mozzarella from Campania bears the trademark mozzarella di bufala campana. In 1993, it was granted denominazione di origine status, in 1996 the trademark received the registry number 1107/96,[23] and in 2008 the European Union granted protected geographical status and the PDO designation.[24] The Consorzio per la Tutela del Formaggio di Bufala Campana (lit. 'Consortium for the Protection of the Buffalo Cheese of Campania') is an organization of approximately 200 producers that, under Italian law, is responsible for the "protection, surveillance, promotion and marketing" of mozzarella di bufala campana.[25][26] The mozzarella industry in Italy resulted from 34,990 recorded females of the Italian Mediterranean breed, which account for ≈30% of the total dairy buffalo population (this percentage does not exist in any other country) and have a mean production of 2,356 kg milk in 270 days of lactation, with 8% fat, and 4.63% protein.[27]

History

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The history of water buffalo in Italy is not settled. One theory is that Asian water buffalo were brought to Italy by Goths during the migrations of the early medieval period.[28] However, according to the Consorzio per la Tutela del Formaggio Mozzarella di Bufala Campana, the "most likely hypothesis" is that they were introduced by Normans from Sicily in 1000, and that Arabs had introduced them into Sicily.[29] The Consorzio per la Tutela also refers to fossil evidence (the prehistoric European Water Buffalo, Bubalus murrensis) suggesting that water buffalo may have originated in Italy.[30] A fourth theory is that water buffalo were brought from Mesopotamia into the Near East by Arabs and then introduced into Europe by pilgrims and returning crusaders.[20]

"In ancient times, the buffalo was a familiar sight in the countryside, since it was widely used as a draught animal in ploughing compact and watery terrains, both because of its strength and the size of its hooves, which do not sink too deeply into moist soils."[31]

References to cheese products made from water buffalo milk appeared for the first time at the beginning of the 12th century.[31] Buffalo mozzarella became widespread throughout the south of Italy from the second half of the 18th century, before which it had been produced only in small quantities.[32]

Production in and around Naples was briefly interrupted during World War II, when retreating German troops slaughtered the area's water buffalo herds, and recommenced a few years after the armistice was signed.[33][34][35][36]

2008 dioxin scare

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On March 21, 2008, The New York Times published an article which reported the difficulties encountered by the Campania producers of mozzarella in avoiding the contamination of dairy products with dioxins, especially in the Caserta area,[37] and managing the resulting crisis in local sales. The article, later referenced by blogs and other publications,[38] referred to the Naples waste management issue and referred to other pieces published by the International Herald Tribune and various other national and international newspapers.[39]

A chain reaction followed, in which several countries including Japan, China, Russia, and Germany took various measures ranging from the mere raising of the attention threshold to the suspension of imports.[40] The Italian institutions activated almost immediately, even in response to pressing requests from the European Union, a series of checks and suspended, in some cases, the sale of dairy products from the incriminated provinces. Tests had shown levels of dioxins higher than normal in at least 14% of samples taken in the provinces of Naples, Caserta, and Avellino. In the provinces of Salerno and Benevento, no control indicated dioxins positivity.

In any case, the contamination has affected, in a limited defined manner, the farms used to produce buffalo mozzarella PDO.[41] The Italian General Confederation of Labour reported a 40% reduction of workforce in the Terra di Lavoro for 2013.[42] On 19 April, China definitively removed the ban on mozzarella, originally activated on 28 March 2008, and tests held in December 2013 in Germany on behalf of four Italian consumer associations have highlighted dioxin and heavy metal levels at least five times lower than the legal limit.[43]

Production stages

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To produce 1 kg (2 lb 3 oz) of cheese, a cheese maker requires 8 kg (18 lb) of cow milk but only 5 kg (11 lb) of buffalo milk. Producing 1 kg of butter requires 14 kg (31 lb) of cow milk but only 10 kg (22 lb) of buffalo milk.[20]

The steps required to produce buffalo mozzarella are:[44][45]

  1. Milk storage (raw buffalo milk stored in steel containers).
  2. Milk heating (thermic treatment to the liquid, then poured into a cream separator).
  3. Curdling (by introduction of natural whey).
  4. Curd maturation (the curd lies in tubs to reduce the acidifying processes and reach a pH value of about 4.95).
  5. Spinning (hot water is poured on the curd to soften it, obtaining pasta filata).
  6. Shaping (with special rotating shaper machines).
  7. Cooling (by immersion in cold water).
  8. Pickling (by immersion in pickling tubs containing the original whey).
  9. Packaging (in special films cut as bags or in small basins and plastic).

Nutrition

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The master cheesemakers in the act of spinning mozzarella di bufala campana PDO

The nutritional composition of buffalo mozzarella differs from that of buffalo milk, because cheesemaking concentrates milk solids while removing part of the water, lactose and soluble components with the whey.

Nutritional composition of mozzarella di bufala campana PDO per 100 g (3.5 oz)[46]
Nutrient Amount
Energy 1075 kJ
Protein 14.1 g
Fat 21.7 g
Available carbohydrate 1.4 g
Water 61.3 g
Fibre 0 g
Calcium 367 mg
Sodium 211 mg
Cholesterol 52 mg
Vitamin A 203 μg retinol equivalent

The producers' consortium gives similar average values for the finished PDO cheese, listing per 100 g 17 g protein, 24 g fat, 0.4 g carbohydrate, 245 mg calcium, 320 mg phosphorus, less than 50–60 mg cholesterol, and less than 0.4 g lactose.[47]

Uses

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Sliced in a salad

Generally, buffalo mozzarella is eaten with calzone, vegetable, salad (for example, Caprese salad), on pizza (a low moisture content buffalo mozzarella is preferred), on grilled bread, with tomatoes, or by itself accompanied by olive oil.[48]

See also

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Notes

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References

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  1. ↑ "Consorzio di Tutela della Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP" (in Italian). Retrieved 20 February 2026.
  2. ↑ "Commission Regulation (EC) No 1107/96 of 12 June 1996 on the registration of geographical indications and designations of origin". EUR-Lex. Retrieved 20 February 2026.
  3. ↑ "Amendment Application Council Regulation (EC) No 510/2006". Official Journal of the European Communities. 50. European Commission: C 90/5–9. 25 March 2007. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  4. ↑ "Commission Regulation (EC) No 103/2008". Official Journal of the European Communities. 51. European Commission: L 31/31. 5 February 2008. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  5. ↑ "Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP: i numeri 2024 e i progetti 2025". Alimenti News (in Italian). Retrieved 20 February 2026.
  6. ↑ "Osservatorio economico: tutti i numeri della bufala DOP" (in Italian). Consorzio di Tutela della Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP. Retrieved 20 February 2026.
  7. ↑ "Grana Padano, il sorpasso al Parmigiano Reggiano: adesso tra le Dop italiane è quella che vale di più". Corriere della Sera (in Italian). 2 December 2024. Retrieved 20 February 2026.
  8. ↑ "The Product: Production Zone". Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP, Consorzio di Tutela. 2008.
  9. ↑ Charter, David (2008-03-29). "Buffalo mozzarella in crisis after pollution fears at Italian farms". The Times. London. Archived from the original on August 29, 2008. Retrieved 2008-10-16.
  10. ↑ Tagliabue, John; Schangnau Journal (2006-06-12). "Buffalo Milk in Swiss Mozzarella Adds Italian Accent". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-10-16.
  11. ↑ "Bufalina AC real Mozzarella Cheese". Archived from the original on 2013-01-09.
  12. ↑ "Fresh Buffalo Mozzarella". Tavolatalk. Realmozzarella.com. 2012-03-08. Archived from the original on 2013-02-07. Retrieved 2010-05-02.
  13. ↑ "water buffalo cheese, yogurt, and specialty meats". Bufala di Vermont. Retrieved 2010-05-02.
  14. ↑ "Water Buffalo Mozzarella". Cookography. 2008-06-07. Archived from the original on 2009-05-25. Retrieved 2008-10-15.
  15. ↑ "Welcome to the Australian Buffalo Industry Council". Buffaloaustralia.org. Archived from the original on June 23, 2005. Retrieved 2010-05-02.
  16. ↑ 李齐. "Thank you, Mr Buffalo". www.chinadaily.com.cn.
  17. ↑ "Ängsholmens Gårdsmejeri | Producent av Svensk Buffelmozzarella". www.angsholmensgardsmejeri.se. Retrieved 2016-10-04.
  18. ↑ Seno, L. O.; V. L. Cardoso and H. Tonhati (2006). "Responses to selection for milk traits in dairy buffaloes". Genetics and Molecular Research. 5 (4): 790–6. PMID 17183486. Retrieved 2008-10-19. Borghese and Mazzi (2005) presented a comprehensive review on the Buffalo populations and production systems in the world. According to these authors, Brazil has the largest buffalo herd size in South America, followed by Venezuela, Argentina and Colombia. Buffaloes were imported into Brazil between the 1940s and 1960s, where the ideal conditions such as thriving pastures, water, grazing space, and suitable temperatures were available. In the 1970s Brazilian buffalo breeders began to use these animals for dairy and meat production.
  19. ↑ Janssen, Peter (2008-08-11). "Italian mountaineers cut the cheese in Thailand". Expatica.com. Archived from the original on 2008-10-12. Retrieved 2008-10-16.
  20. 1 2 3 National Research Council (2002). "Introduction". The Water Buffalo: New Prospects for an Underutilized Animal. Books For Business. ISBN 0-89499-193-0. OCLC 56613238.
  21. ↑ Cox, Antoon (2008-01-13). "Italian cheese, sold in the US, made in India". The Indian Express. Retrieved 2008-10-16.
  22. ↑ "South Africa's 1st Real Buffalo Mozzarella". Slow Food (Johannesburg). 2010-02-10. Retrieved 2015-07-08.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  23. ↑ "The Consortium: History of The Organization". Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP, Consorzio di Tutela. 2008. The Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP trademark (Protected Name of Origin) was registered with the European Community Regulation no. 1107 of 1996, three years after it was given the DOC mark (D.P.C.M. of 10/05/1993).
  24. ↑ European Commission (2008-02-05). "Commission Regulation (EC) No 103/2008 of 4 February 2008 approving non-minor amendments to the specification for a name entered in the register of protected designations of origin and protected geographical indications — Mozzarella di Bufala Campana (PDO)". Official Journal of the European Union. L 31: 31. Retrieved 2008-10-23.
  25. ↑ "The Consortium: History of The Organization". Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP, Consorzio di Tutela. 2008. The Consortium is the only organization recognized by the Italian Ministry of Agricultural and Forestry Policies (MIPAF) for the protection, surveillance, promotion and marketing of Mozzarella di Bufala Campana.
  26. ↑ PDO Archived 2013-06-02 at the Wayback Machine
  27. ↑ Minervino, Antonio Humberto Hamad; Zava, Marco; Vecchio, Domenico; Borghese, Antonio (2020). "Bubalus bubalis: A Short Story". Frontiers in Veterinary Science. 7 570413. doi:10.3389/fvets.2020.570413. ISSN 2297-1769. PMC 7736047. PMID 33335917.
  28. ↑ "Mozzarella di Bufala". Forno Bravo Cooking. Forno Bravo, LLC. Archived from the original on 2008-09-20. Retrieved 2008-10-16. It all starts with the Asian Buffalo, brought to Italy by the Goths, as they migrated southwest during the waning years of the Roman empire.
  29. ↑ "History". Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP, Consorzio di Tutela. 2008. There are many theories on their Italian beginnings: the most likely hypothesis is that the Norman kings, around the year 1000, brought them into southern Italy from Sicily, where they had been introduced by the Arabs.
  30. ↑ "History". Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP, Consorzio di Tutela. 2008. However, others believe that the buffalo originated in Italy, a theory that is based on fossils found in the Roman countryside, as well as from results of recent studies that appear to demonstrate that Italian buffalos have a different phylogeny than Indian buffalos.
  31. 1 2 "CAMPANA BUFFALO'S MOZZARELLA CHEESE". www.mozzarelladibufala.org. Archived from the original on 2008-10-17. Retrieved 2006-12-23.
  32. ↑ "Campana Buffalo's Mozzarella Cheese". Archived from the original on 2008-10-17. Retrieved 2008-10-20.
  33. ↑ The Cheese Companion by Judy Ridgway (Running Press, 2004), p. 123.
  34. ↑ The Complete Idiot's Guide to Cheeses of the World by Steve Ehlers and Jeanette Hurt (Penguin, 2008), p. 96.
  35. ↑ "Mozarella" by Laura Weiss in The Oxford companion to American food and drink, edited by Andrew F. Smith (Oxford University Press, 2007), p. 394.
  36. ↑ Brooklyn: a state of mind by Michael W. Robbins and Wendy Palitz (Workman Publishing, 2000), p. 306.
  37. ↑ «So it was a blow when health authorities found high levels of dioxins, nasty byproducts of chemical manufacturing, in samples of buffalo milk from farms near Caserta, north of Naples, in recent weeks, and began a sweeping criminal investigation and the quarantine of dozens of herds of buffalo.», in The New York Times, Italy's Mozzarella Makers Fight Dioxin Scare, 21 March 2008
  38. ↑ Lyons, Patrick J. (21 March 2008). "Italy's Mozzarella Makers Fight Dioxin Scare". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 July 2018.
  39. ↑ "Articolo di International Herald Tribune". Archived from the original on 2008-12-01. Retrieved 2018-07-12.
  40. ↑ Articoli vari
  41. ↑ Vedi il comunicato "Copia archiviata". Ministero della Salute. 28 March 2008. Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 23 January 2013.
  42. ↑ Palermo, Antonella (2013-12-19). "Terra dei fuochi, allarme Cgil: in agricoltura persi 4 posti su 10". Corriere del Mezzogiorno (in Italian). Retrieved 2024-01-04.
  43. ↑ I test tenuti in Germania assolvono la mozzarella bufala campana dop, Repubblica.it, 13-12-2013
  44. ↑ "Mozzarella di Bufala Campana" (in Italian). Formaggio.it. Retrieved 2008-10-21.
  45. ↑ Anuttama (2007-03-12). How to turn milk into mozzarella cheese. YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2008-10-16.
  46. ↑ "Mozzarella di bufala campana DOP". Tabelle di composizione degli alimenti (in Italian). CREA Centro di ricerca Alimenti e Nutrizione. Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  47. ↑ "Nutritional Values". Consorzio di tutela Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP. Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  48. ↑ "Campana Buffalo's Mozzarella Cheese: How To Enjoy". MozzarelladiBufal.org. Archived from the original on 2008-10-17. Retrieved 2008-10-22.

Further reading

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