He has been called "the only genius ever to operate in the breeding world" and "the greatest single figure in the history of Italian racing".

[1] Born in Turin, orphaned at 6 years of age, Federico Tesio obtained a degree from the University of Florence.

In 1898, he and his wife Lydia Tesio purchased a silk worm farm complete with thousands of Mulberry trees.

Tesio is given credit for the breeding successes of his farm, while his wife is identified as playing an important role in the social and business aspects of the operation, being responsible for bringing in Marchese Mario Incisa Della Rochetta as his partner in 1932.

In 1947, Ulrico Hoepli of Milano published a book by Federico Tesio which he had titled Puro-Sangue - Animale da Esperimento.