The cultivation of hazelnuts in Piedmont was a rather limited affair until the 19th century. Then, in the years spanning the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century, a number of Turin-based confectioners began to demand more of the fruit and thus prompted a sharp increase in its cultivation. Once growing techniques had been modernised and important local industries began to emerge, demand rose still further. 
       The name Nocciola del Piemonte is reserved for the fruit of the Tonda Gentile delle Langhe cultivar. The medium-thick shell of the chestnut is imperfectly spherical, and its colour is a dull unshiny brown.

       The area of cultivation encompasses numerous town districts in the provinces of Alessandria, Asti, Cuneo, Turin, Novara, Biella and Vercelli.

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