Venison: Did you know...

Venison has always been a top quality choice when it comes to red meat and the quality of Hungarian free-range venison is famous throughout Europe.

Hunting genuinely wild, sustainable Red Deer and Wild Boar, using Grey Cattle and Buffaloes which are kept in National Parks, where they graze on grasses and other vegetation is hugely beneficial because it gives their meat a finer grain. Biodiversity is vital to the health of the animals, and the quality of their meat products is directly linked to the animals' food and surroundings.

Their natural food supply results from climatic conditions perfectly suited for their species, and the animals enjoy herbs, wild  nuts, nourishing native grasses and other vegetation as they roam the lush oak and beech forests. They are what they eat....exactly like us.

The key is to harvest animals which are free of chemicals, hormones and antibiotics as they are healthier and they taste better than farmed animals.

Production is also very important. When harvesting game animals it's best when the whole process is done in small batches with supervision by a meat inspector, with all the necessary certificates of the AHFS (Animal Health and Food Control Station) for each animal. To make consistently excellent products, the butchers, master butchers and nutritionists have to have decades of experience, it is not enough to follow traditional methods with ultra modern techniques.

These days, with modern curing and smoking chambers creating perfect conditions for smoking and curing we can provide consistent quality which was just a dream 50 years ago. Only prime cuts can be used and everything has to be hand made and human controlled, using as few machines as possible to keep quality to the highest levels. The secret of Hungarian premium smoked products is the use of selected beech wood for smoking. This preserves the meat and gives the delicacies their sensational flavour. Those of us who love the flavours of the good old days can enjoy every delicious mouthful of Hungarian smoked premium bresaolas and salamis, because there is hard work and professionalism behind each product.

Did you know...

* You can see Red Deer and Wild Boar on many objects and cave paintings; some of them are 40,000 years old dating back to the Paleolithic Age.

* Red Deer is one of the largest deer species, and Wild Boar is the only wild pig family that lives in European forests.

* Venison meat is a source of food in many parts of the world, it tastes wonderful and has a high nutritional value, very rich in protein, containing less fat than beef or chicken. It is also rich in iron, phosphorus and zinc, but contains almost no cholesterol.

* The majority of Wild Boar in Spain and France possess 36 chromosomes, while most Wild Boar in the rest of Europe possess 38.

* Hungarian Grey Cattle are the national symbol of Hungary. It was on the WWF list around the 1960’s with a total of 200 cows and six bulls, but today that number has increased, and they are not even close to danger anymore.

* Approximately 1 billion cows live on earth, 20% of them in India where they are considered sacred animals.

* A Water Buffalo is four times stronger than a horse. That meant Hungarian settlers could cultivate the earth, pull heavy machinery and carry heavy loads, and they were still a common farm animal just 100 years ago.

* Water Buffaloes eat and ruminate eight hours per day.

* The meat of the Buffalo is leaner, higher in iron and magnesium, low in fat but essentially has all the flavour of beef.