The Abondance is a French breed of

dairy cattle Dairy cattle (also called dairy cows) are cattle bred with the ability to produce large quantities of milk, from which dairy products are made. Dairy cattle generally are of the species '' Bos taurus''. Historically, little distinction was ...

. It originated in the high valleys of

Haute-Savoie Haute-Savoie () is a Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region of Southeastern France, bordering both Switzerland and Italy. Its Prefectures in France, prefecture is Annecy. To the north is Lake Gene ...

and shares its name with the commune and valley of Abondance and the former canton of in that region. Its area of origin lies within the former

Chablais The Chablais (; ; ) was a province of the Duchy of Savoy. Its capital was Thonon-les-Bains. The Chablais was elevated to a duchy in 1311 by Henry VII, Holy Roman Emperor. This region is currently divided into three territories, the '' Chablais s ...

province of the

Duchy of Savoy The Duchy of Savoy (; ) was a territorial entity of the Savoyard state that existed from 1416 until 1847 and was a possession of the House of Savoy. It was created when Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, raised the County of Savoy into a duchy f ...

, and until the late nineteenth century it was for that reason known as the Chablaisienne. It is distributed principally in

Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (; AURA) or ; or ; . is a Regions of France, region in southeast-central France created by the 2014 territorial reform of French regions; it resulted from the merger of Auvergne and Rhône-Alpes. The new region came into e ...

and is well adapted to rough grazing on mountain terrain. It is the fourth-most numerous French breed of dairy cattle; most of the milk produced is used to make

Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée In France, the ''appellation d'origine contrôlée'' (, ; abbr. AOC ) is a label that identifies an agricultural product whose stages of production and processing are carried out in a defined geographical area – the ''terroir'' – and using ...

cheeses such as Abondance and

Reblochon Reblochon () is a soft washed-rind and smear-ripened French cheese made in the Alpine region of Haute-Savoie from raw cow's milk. It has its own AOC designation. Reblochon was first produced in the Thônes and Arly valleys, in the Aravis ...

History

The Abondance originated in the French or Savoyard part of the former

province of the

, and until the late nineteenth century it was for that reason known as the Chablaisienne. A

herd-book A breed registry, also known as a herdbook, studbook or register, in animal husbandry, the hobby of animal fancy, is an official list of animals within a specific breed whose parents are known. Animals are usually registered by their breeders wh ...

was started in 1891 or 1894, and the name was changed at that time to the present one. It is the fourth-most numerous French breed of dairy cattle, and is distributed principally in the former administrative regions of

Auvergne Auvergne (; ; or ) is a cultural region in central France. As of 2016 Auvergne is no longer an administrative division of France. It is generally regarded as conterminous with the land area of the historical Province of Auvergne, which was dis ...

and

Rhône-Alpes Rhône-Alpes () was an administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it is part of the new region Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. It is located on the eastern border of the country, towards the south. The region was named after the river Rhône a ...

, now merged to form

. In 2021 there was a total population of about head, with 260 bulls and breeding cows distributed in almost herds; in 2024 the

conservation status The conservation status of a group of organisms (for instance, a species) indicates whether the group still exists and how likely the group is to become extinct in the near future. Many factors are taken into account when assessing conservation ...

of the breed was "not at risk". Some have been exported to countries in Africa and Asia and to Canada and South Africa; in 2024 none were reported to

DAD-IS DAD-IS is the acronym for the Domestic Animal Diversity Information System, a tool developed and maintained by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations as a part of its programme for management of animal genetic resources for ...

from any country other than France.

Characteristics

The cattle are of medium size: cows weigh between and stand on average some at the

withers Withers are the ridge between the shoulder blades of an animal, typically a quadruped. In many species, this ridge is the tallest point of the body. In horses and dogs, it is the standard place to measure the animal's height. In contrast, catt ...

; bulls weigh some , with an average height of . The coat is a rich mahogany red, with white head, belly, lower legs and tail switch; there are patches of red round the eyes. Horns are present in both sexes; they are light, black-tipped and set on high.

Use

The cattle are reared for milk, for

meat Meat is animal Tissue (biology), tissue, often muscle, that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted and farmed other animals for meat since prehistory. The Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of vertebrates, including chickens, sheep, ...

and for

conservation grazing Conservation grazing or targeted grazing is the use of semi- feral or domesticated grazing livestock to maintain and increase the biodiversity of natural or semi-natural grasslands, heathlands, wood pasture, wetlands and many other habitats.

; they forage well on coarse pasture. The average milk yield is or about in a standardised

lactation Lactation describes the secretion of milk from the mammary glands and the period of time that a mother lactates to feed her young. The process naturally occurs with all sexually mature female mammals, although it may predate mammals. The process ...

of 302 days. The milk contains on average

milk fat Butterfat or milkfat is the fatty portion of milk. Milk and cream are often sold according to the amount of butterfat they contain. Composition Butterfat is mainly composed of triglycerides. Each triglyceride contains three fatty acids. Butt ...

and protein. Some of it is traditionally used to produce

cheeses such as

, Abondance, Tome des Bauges and Beaufort and Indication Géographique Protégée cheeses such as Émmental de Savoie and

Tomme de Savoie Tomme de Savoie () is an uplandJoel Robuchon et al., ''Larousse Gastronomique'' (New York, New York: Clarkson Potter, 2001), page 1220. variety of Tomme cheese, specifically, one from Savoy in the French Alps. It is a mild, semi-firm cow's mil ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abondance (Cattle) Cattle breeds originating in France Haute-Savoie