Casu Marzu

Casu Marzu is an over-ripe sheep's milk cheese from Sardinia, which matures until it contains maggots. Other names are

• Casu modde
• Casu cundhídu or
• Formaggio marcio ( Italian)

Casu Marzu means of spoiled cheese in a Sardinian dialect.

The manufacturing process is derived from that of pecorino Sardo, but put cheese flies of the species Piophila casei in the production of their eggs on the cheese off. The maggots penetrate the cheese and convert it through digestion, so it gets a creamy consistency and a strong flavor and a liquid secretes the lagrima ( tear ) is called. When eating to live maggots are in the cheese. These are eaten. Since the larvae of these species to gastric acid are partially resistant, this can arrive over the cheese in the human digestive tract and cause myiasis there.

Casu Marzu you eat with the typical Sardinian bread Pane carasau. You can drink this best one cannonau, a robust red wine.

According to a television report production and sales in 2005 were prohibited by the EU food law. There are today, however, efforts to ensure, through appropriate hygienic measures that the flies do not come into contact with corpses, so be able to settle only on the cheese.