Asturian Mountain cattle

Asturian Mountain (Spanish: Asturiana de la Montaña) is a local Spanish breed of cattle, possessed of notable foraging ability, breeding capacity, and docility. They are primarily raised in the east of Asturias, in the north of Spain, particularly in the mountain range of the Picos de Europa, including within the National Park of Covadonga. The breed is also known as the Casina They are beef cattle, the source of meat labeled with the protected designation "Casín" (after the Asturian town of Caso), and one of three breeds used to produce Casín cheese.

The Asturian Mountain breed has been part of the landscape and ecosystem of the east of Asturias for a very long time. This breed belongs to an exclusive bovine group in Spain known as the tronco Cantábrico ('Cantabric trunk') that only includes breeds native to northern Spain, the most numerous of which are the Asturian Valley cattle. The Asturian Mountain is a descendant of the eastern Roxa beef cattle group, historically located in Asturias. Consequently, the breed is sometimes referred to as the RAM (Roxa, Asturian Mountain). This group is distinct from the western Roxa cattle, despite evidence of further variability among animals and areas within the population. For centuries, breeders of the eastern Roxa group in the council of Caso and bordering valleys such as Ponga, selected for higher milk yields aimed at cheese production. This selection made a reputation for the bulls from the council of Caso because of their daughters’ higher milk yield, and changed their farms into sire exporters for the whole of the east of Asturias, playing an important part in the fixation of what nowadays we know as the Asturian Mountain breed.

The official census of Asturian Mountain cattle proceeds from the herdbook, which is managed by La Asociación Española de criadores de ganado vacuno selecto de la raza Asturiana de la Montaña (ASEAMO, 'Spanish Association of breeders of selected cattle of the Asturian Mountain breed') since its creation in 1986.

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