Volailles du Charolais

Volailles du Charolais designates farm-reared poultry from a defined area of the Charolais region, produced from slow-growing stock raised in the open air or free-range, fed a high percentage of cereals, and slaughtered at a minimum age close to sexual maturity. The product is marketed fresh or frozen, whole or in sections, and carries numbered labels.

About this designation

Registered as a PGI on 21 June 1996 under file number PGI-FR-0153 (eAmbrosia identifier EUGI00000012936), Volailles du Charolais covers poultry carcases and cut pieces produced within a defined geographical area comprising the département of Saône-et-Loire to the east of the River Saône, together with certain districts in the départements of Loire and Allier. The specification requires slow-growing stock, reared as farm poultry in the open air or free-range, fed with a high percentage of cereals, and slaughtered at a minimum age set for slaughter. Birds must be graded after slaughter. The product may be marketed fresh or frozen, whole — either oven-ready or with giblets — or in sections. The specification describes the flesh as firm with superior organoleptic characteristics. Traceability is maintained through documentary records kept for every batch: breeder declarations of birds added to stock, delivery slips for day-old chicks, departure declarations for the slaughterhouse, carcase collection receipts, and declarations of labels used after slaughter and of downgraded poultry. All labels are numbered. The applicant group is the Syndicat des Volailles Fermières de l'Est Central, based in Chalon-sur-Saône. The control body named in the specification is A.B.C.Q.S., located in Charolles. Products bear the designation Volailles du Charolais alongside the poultry type and the name and address of the certifying authority.

Source: The register document this entry was written from · retrieved August 26, 2026

Distinctive facts

• Registered as a PGI on 21 June 1996 under file number PGI-FR-0153, eAmbrosia identifier EUGI00000012936.
• The geographical area is defined as the département of Saône-et-Loire east of the River Saône, plus certain districts in the départements of Loire and Allier.
• All labels applied after slaughter are numbered, and documentary records are kept for every batch to ensure full traceability.
• The specification states that selective breeding producing a variety with bluish-grey plumage has been practised since 1978, and that a Red Label was awarded in 1988.

Tasting notes

Charolais (Saône-et-Loire) free-range poultry IGP. Firm flavored flesh from Charolais farming country.

HoReCa use

Volailles du Charolais is associated with Burgundian-Charolais regional preparations.

Packaging

• whole-bird-fresh-1.5-2.5kg