Strangest of all the typical products from the province of Novara area, apart from donkeys, is Bettelmatt cheese produced in a single pasture near the Alpe Morasco.

It is the most famous cheese from Ossola and only 100 or 150 vats of the stuff is made each year.

The milk for the cheese comes only from cows breeding in the precise area of Punta dei Camosci for a specific 12-15 days of the year.

The cheese is similar to a fontina and has a characteristic yellowish color due to a herb, the 'mutellina', which enriches the grass in the zone.

Altogether, you couldn't wish for a more typical product than this.

Let's hope globalization doesn't force such products out of existence.