The history of mountain pasture exploitation in the Ossola Valley is documented as far back as the first half of the year one thousand. The Ossola mountains offer, even at high altitudes, wide expanses of land well sheltered from the winds for the animals to graze on: from these characteristics, the local mountain people, over the centuries, have been able to make cheeses of great value. These are productions of a few hundred cheeses per year each, processed in July and August and brought down to the valley by mule or, in recent years, by helicopter.