History
THE ORIGINS OF TERREFIDE
The flocks descend from the region of the Abruzzi towards the plains of Puglia, crossing Molise before they find themselves in the presence of the sacred Mount Gargano. This is what is known as ‘transhumance’: a tradition established by man and traced by sheep; animals that symbolise this ancient practice which has been lost in the mists of time.
THE SHEPHERDS
At the end of the warm season, shepherds would always transfer their cattle from mountain pastures to plains; here they would spend the winter in milder climates where there was an abundance of feed for their flocks. Men and animals travelled along hundreds of kilometres of 111m wide dirt tracks, which crossed the countryside and passed by villages and towns. As a result of these trampling sheep and their incessant grass grazing, these tracks have properly taken shape.
INSPIRATION
This transhumance provided inspiration for poets and writers, such as Gabriele D’Annunzio, who has immortalized this ancient practice in the verses of his poem ‘I Pastori’. With every emigration a ‘micro world’ was born, and each brought with it wealth of mind and money to populations who inhabited those lands crossed. In 1447, King Alfonso I of Aragon established the ‘Royal Customs of Mena Sheep’, which first held its headquarters in Lucera, then later in Foggia. These customs regulated transhumance in the plains of Puglia and, from proceeds deriving from the ‘trust’, the right to owning pastures, ensured a major source of income for the tax authorities of the Kingdom of Naples. The ‘sheep customs’ became the longest running state company in history, with more than three centuries of administrative activity. It would later be abolished in 1806 during the French occupation of the Napoleonic Kingdom of Naples.
FROM THIS STORY COMES A TALE OF ANCESTRAL ORIGINS WHICH WE HAVE DECIDED TO TRANSFORM INTO A BRAND DRAWN FROM THE VALUES OF TRANSHUMANCE. ‘TERRE FIDE’ OR FAITHFUL LAND, MEANING: TRUST AND CONFIDENCE IN TRADITION, BORN FROM ANCIENT AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES, TRUST AND CONFIDENCE IN THE QUALITY OF OUR PRODUCTS, IN THE COMMITMENT THAT WE HAVE MADE FOR DECADES IN THE SEARCH FOR AND ENHANCEMENT OF THIS PARTICULAR TASTE , AND IN OUR APPROACH TO SAFEGUARDING AND PROTECTING THE ENVIRONMENT.
