Not in true Italian sausage, either (by true, I mean that which I buy in Italy), or the Ticinese version. Here people often eat it raw. Yesterday we were having a discussion of whether one should also eat the casing raw, or just the insides. My daughter was sure that some of her forends also eat the casing raw, but I and her friend who was dining with us were both of the opinion that one does not eat raw casings. Tom