Iberian pig

The Iberian pig (cerdo ibérico, also Iberian black pig) is a native breed of the Iberian Peninsula listed in Spain's Official Catalogue of Livestock Breeds. It has five varieties: Retinto, Entrepelado, Lampiño, Torbiscal and Manchado de Jabugo. Traditionally tied to the dehesa of south-west Spain and Portugal, it is the animal behind jamón ibérico.

Retinto is easy to spot: a fine, light skeleton, a reddish coat and ears that hang forward like the eaves of a roof. The skin of the breed is always pigmented, from deep black to reddish. Lampiño is almost hairless with folds of skin, and Manchado de Jabugo is spotted. According to the MAPA ministry catalogue, a boar averages 143.16 kg and a sow 128.07 kg.

Where does «pata negra» come from? The black hoof is a trait of the breed that no other Spanish pig had, hence the name. The ministry notes that the term was often misused, and the Real Decreto 4/2014 standard allows it only for «de bellota 100% ibérico».

The montanera is fattening on the acorns and grass of the dehesa. Under the national standard a pig enters it between 1 October and 15 December in lots of 92–115 kg and must gain at least 46 kg over more than 60 days; slaughter runs from 15 December to 31 March, at 14 months or older. The acorns come from holm oak (encina), cork oak and, to a lesser extent, quejigo. Stocking ranges from 0.25 to 1.25 pigs per hectare depending on tree cover.

What do the acorns change? In a study of 63 Jamón de Huelva PDO hams (Foods, 2020), oleic acid in the subcutaneous fat was 54.80% in bellota, 53.18% in cebo de campo and 50.96% in cebo. Oleic acid separated the three categories better than anything else.

Yet most of these pigs never see an acorn. According to MAPA, the industry mostly buys Iberian × Duroc crosses fattened intensively, and purebreds are fattened almost only in the montanera. Duroc is the only other breed allowed in the 50% and 75% crosses. The herd book has been kept since 1987, and four of the five varieties are classed as threatened.

Why this matters to you: once you know the breed, «100%», «75%» and the seal colour on a ham start to make sense. The page Jamón ibérico explains how to read the label, and Guijuelo, Jabugo and Los Pedroches show how the regions differ.