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PGI — Aquitaine
Chickens, guinea fowl, turkeys and capons reared at the foot of the Pyrénées since the Middle Ages — small farm sheds, 50% Béarn maize in the feed ration, firm and flavourful meat slaughtered at full maturity.
Free-range poultry from Aquitaine.
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Béarn has a long-standing tradition of livestock farming: the Moors are thought to have introduced poultry to the South of France as early as the 8th century, and poultry keeping has been attested on the region's farms ever since. Set against the Pyrénées, Béarn enjoys a temperate climate with an oceanic influence — abundant sunshine, mild year-round temperatures, and generous, regular rainfall — that is particularly favourable to outdoor rearing. Poultry farming was a natural fit within the economy of small Béarn family smallholdings, where the farmer's wife generally tended the farmyard flock to supplement the household income. Maize, brought back from the Americas by navigators following Christopher Columbus, found an ideal home in Béarn; its cultivation, recorded in texts as early as 1628 under the name of “froment d'Inde”, became over the centuries the key feed resource for local poultry farming — giving Béarn poultry both their colour and their reputation.
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Henri IV, born in Pau in 1553, is inseparable from Béarn culinary culture. The king made a concrete contribution to the development of local poultry farming by creating a farm in the hamlet of Pau and bringing in breeders from Saintonge to pass on their know-how to the people of Béarn. While history attributes to him the famous phrase “Every Sunday, eat poule au pot”, which has remained a saying closely tied to Béarn cuisine, this owes more to royal legend than historical fact — yet this association between the King of Navarre and farm-reared poultry reflects a profound truth nonetheless: for centuries, Béarn had been a land with a tradition of quality poultry farming. Béarn farmers perpetuated this reputation through the centuries, developing traditional farming practices that differed sharply from the industrial methods that developed in the 20th century.
The PGI for Volailles du Béarn builds upon an earlier recognition: as early as 1978, the Syndicat de Défense des Produits de Basse-Cour Béarnais (SEBOBEARN) obtained the very first Label Rouge awarded in Pyrénées-Atlantiques for Poulet Fermier du Béarn. The PGI covers chickens, guinea fowl, turkeys, capons and poulardes reared according to the specifications in the department of Pyrénées-Atlantiques and neighbouring cantons, guaranteeing in particular the use of Béarn maize for at least 50% of the feed ration during fattening and slaughter at an age close to sexual maturity — far later than in industrial rearing.
Appearance
Cream to lightly golden skin depending on the breed and feed; moderate fat cover; firm flesh, visible grain, white to slightly pinkish colour
Aroma
Well-developed farmyard poultry aromas, cereal notes linked to Béarn maize; more powerful scent than industrial poultry
Taste
Full and slightly sweet flavour (50% maize in the feed ration); aromatic complexity typical of free-range rearing; length on the palate distinctly superior to standard poultry
Texture
Firm and juicy flesh, holding up well to slow cooking; slight resistance to the bite associated with natural muscle development
Volailles du Béarn include several species: chicken (the most common), guinea fowl with gamey notes, festive turkey, as well as capon and poularde for special occasions. All share the same rearing conditions: small sheds (under 150 m² for chicken), access to the outdoors, a diet rich in local maize, and late slaughter approaching sexual maturity.
The poultry are reared in low-density sheds (under 150 m² for chickens), allowing natural behaviour and low stress.
Each flock has free access to a grassy or wooded range.
The ration contains a minimum of 50% maize during the fattening period.
The breeds used are selected for their suitability for slow rearing, without growth promoters.
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Béarn chicken is traditionally prepared in a garbure sauce — a thick soup-stew of garden vegetables, beans and blanched cabbage — or simply roasted with a stuffing of piments d'Espelette and mountain herbs. Béarn guinea fowl pairs particularly well with a juniper berry jus or a sauce made with sweet white Jurançon moelleux. The wines of Béarn — Jurançon sec, Madiran, Irouléguy — naturally accompany this characterful poultry.
Area covered: Pyrénées-Atlantiques (64) and neighbouring cantons
Key requirements: Small sheds (≤ 150 m²); maize 50% of the ration; slaughter at sexual maturity; slow-growing strains; free-range
Defence and management organisation
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