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Chianina
The Chianina is an Italian breed of large white cattle. It was formerly principally a draught breed; it is now raised mainly for beef. It is the largest and one of the oldest cattle breeds in the world. The bistecca alla fiorentina is produced from its meat.
The Chianina is among the oldest breeds of cattle. It originates in the area of the Valdichiana, from which it takes its name, and the middle Tiber Valley. Chianina cattle have been raised in the Italian regions of Tuscany, Umbria and Lazio for at least 2200 years. Columella, writing about types of oxen in about 55 AD, says "Umbria vastos et albos ..." (VI.I.2), which in the first English translation is "Umbria has such as are huge, and of a white colour". Chianina oxen were the principal source of agricultural power in the area until displaced by the mechanisation of agriculture and the collapse of the mezzadria system in the years following the Second World War; they were in use in agriculture until at least 1970 and are still used in processions such as that of the Palio di Siena.
From 1931 breeders began to favour selection of animals more suited to meat production, with shorter limbs, longer bodies and more heavily muscled rump and thighs; in the twenty-first century selection is based also on factors such as growth rate, meat yield and – in cows – maternal ability. While one source reports a herd-book dating from 1856, others date the institution of the Libro Genealogico ('genealogical herdbook') to 1933, when a breed standard was established and commissions were set up by the then Ministero dell'Agricoltura e delle Foreste, the Italian ministry of agriculture,) to identify, mark and register morphologically suitable animals; the standard of the Chianina breed was fixed by ministerial decree of 7 August 1935. A private register was previously kept by the largest cattle breeder of the Sienese Valdichiana, the Eredi del conte Bastogi of Abbadia di Montepulciano, and a group of breeders had in 1899 formed a society, the Società degli Agricoltori della Valdichiana, of which a principal aim was the establishment of a herd-book. Another herd-book was started in 1963, and remains active.
Since the Second World War the Chianina has become a world breed, raised almost exclusively for its high quality meat. Through exportation of breeding stock, of frozen semen and of embryos, it has reached Australia, China, Russia, Asian countries and the Americas.
At the end of 2010 there were 47236 head registered in Italy, of which more than 90% were in Tuscany, Umbria and Lazio; it is, after the Marchigiana, the second-most numerous indigenous beef breed of Italy. In 2025 the total population reported world-wide was estimated at just over 55000 head. Approximately 49000 of these, or about 89% of the total, were in Italy; the other countries reporting over 100 head were: Argentina, 1050; Mexico, 3710; and South Africa, 1151.
The Chianina is both the tallest and the heaviest breed of cattle. Mature bulls stand up to 1.8 m (71 in), and oxen may reach 2 m (79 in). It is not unusual for bulls to exceed 1600 kg (3500 lb) in weight. Males standing over 1.51 m (59 in) at 12 months are considered top-grade. A Chianina bull named Donetto holds the world record for the heaviest bull, reported by one source as 1740 kg (3840 lb) when exhibited at the Arezzo show in 1955, but as 1780 kg (3920 lb) and 1.85 m (73 in) tall at the age of 8 by others including the Tenuta La Fratta, near Sinalunga in the province of Siena, where he was bred. Cows usually weigh 800–900 kg (1800–2000 lb), but commonly exceed 1000 kg (2200 lb); those standing over 1.65 m (65 in) are judged top-grade. Calves routinely weigh over 50 kg (110 lb) at birth.
The coat is white; very slight grey shading round the eyes and on the foreparts is tolerated. The skin, the muzzle, the switch, the hooves and the tips of the horns are black, as are the natural openings – the anus, vulva, eyelids, palate, tongue, and lower part of the scrotum. As in other grey cattle, calves are invariably born wheaten (fromentino), but turn white within a few months.
The Chianina is a dual-purpose breed, raised both for meat and for draught use; the milk is barely sufficient for suckling.
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Chianina
The Chianina is an Italian breed of large white cattle. It was formerly principally a draught breed; it is now raised mainly for beef. It is the largest and one of the oldest cattle breeds in the world. The bistecca alla fiorentina is produced from its meat.
The Chianina is among the oldest breeds of cattle. It originates in the area of the Valdichiana, from which it takes its name, and the middle Tiber Valley. Chianina cattle have been raised in the Italian regions of Tuscany, Umbria and Lazio for at least 2200 years. Columella, writing about types of oxen in about 55 AD, says "Umbria vastos et albos ..." (VI.I.2), which in the first English translation is "Umbria has such as are huge, and of a white colour". Chianina oxen were the principal source of agricultural power in the area until displaced by the mechanisation of agriculture and the collapse of the mezzadria system in the years following the Second World War; they were in use in agriculture until at least 1970 and are still used in processions such as that of the Palio di Siena.
From 1931 breeders began to favour selection of animals more suited to meat production, with shorter limbs, longer bodies and more heavily muscled rump and thighs; in the twenty-first century selection is based also on factors such as growth rate, meat yield and – in cows – maternal ability. While one source reports a herd-book dating from 1856, others date the institution of the Libro Genealogico ('genealogical herdbook') to 1933, when a breed standard was established and commissions were set up by the then Ministero dell'Agricoltura e delle Foreste, the Italian ministry of agriculture,) to identify, mark and register morphologically suitable animals; the standard of the Chianina breed was fixed by ministerial decree of 7 August 1935. A private register was previously kept by the largest cattle breeder of the Sienese Valdichiana, the Eredi del conte Bastogi of Abbadia di Montepulciano, and a group of breeders had in 1899 formed a society, the Società degli Agricoltori della Valdichiana, of which a principal aim was the establishment of a herd-book. Another herd-book was started in 1963, and remains active.
Since the Second World War the Chianina has become a world breed, raised almost exclusively for its high quality meat. Through exportation of breeding stock, of frozen semen and of embryos, it has reached Australia, China, Russia, Asian countries and the Americas.
At the end of 2010 there were 47236 head registered in Italy, of which more than 90% were in Tuscany, Umbria and Lazio; it is, after the Marchigiana, the second-most numerous indigenous beef breed of Italy. In 2025 the total population reported world-wide was estimated at just over 55000 head. Approximately 49000 of these, or about 89% of the total, were in Italy; the other countries reporting over 100 head were: Argentina, 1050; Mexico, 3710; and South Africa, 1151.
The Chianina is both the tallest and the heaviest breed of cattle. Mature bulls stand up to 1.8 m (71 in), and oxen may reach 2 m (79 in). It is not unusual for bulls to exceed 1600 kg (3500 lb) in weight. Males standing over 1.51 m (59 in) at 12 months are considered top-grade. A Chianina bull named Donetto holds the world record for the heaviest bull, reported by one source as 1740 kg (3840 lb) when exhibited at the Arezzo show in 1955, but as 1780 kg (3920 lb) and 1.85 m (73 in) tall at the age of 8 by others including the Tenuta La Fratta, near Sinalunga in the province of Siena, where he was bred. Cows usually weigh 800–900 kg (1800–2000 lb), but commonly exceed 1000 kg (2200 lb); those standing over 1.65 m (65 in) are judged top-grade. Calves routinely weigh over 50 kg (110 lb) at birth.
The coat is white; very slight grey shading round the eyes and on the foreparts is tolerated. The skin, the muzzle, the switch, the hooves and the tips of the horns are black, as are the natural openings – the anus, vulva, eyelids, palate, tongue, and lower part of the scrotum. As in other grey cattle, calves are invariably born wheaten (fromentino), but turn white within a few months.
The Chianina is a dual-purpose breed, raised both for meat and for draught use; the milk is barely sufficient for suckling.
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