IDENTIFICATION OF PIECES ACCORDING TO THE SEAL
Ham can be quickly identified by the label on the hoof. There are four colors:

• Black Seal: for 100% Iberian acorn-fed Ham: The black label on the ham indicates that it is 100% Iberian breed and that during the fattening months it has been fed on acorns and grass in a free-range pasture. Its parents will be 100% Iberian and must be registered in the Genealogical Book of the Iberian pig breed.
• Red Seal: for Iberian acorn-fed Ham: These are hams that come from pigs between 50 and 75% Iberian breed and that during the fattening months have been fed on acorns and grass in a free-range pasture.
• Green Seal: for Iberian Field-Fed Ham: These are hams that come from specimens with between 50 and 100% Iberian breed, however, they have not been fed on acorns in the pasture, only with feed and natural resources in freedom.
• White Seal: for Iberian Feed Ham: They also come from Iberian specimens, with a percentage between 50 and 100%, however, they have not been raised in the field. They have been fed on feed in farms.

PROTECTED DESIGNATION OF ORIGIN (PDO)
They constitute the system used in our country for the recognition of a differentiated quality, resulting from unique and differential characteristics, due to the geographical environment in which the raw materials are produced, the products are made, and the influence of the human factor that participates in them.
The producer who adheres to a PDO commits to following the defined rules to maintain quality at high standards.
Additionally, there must be a public body that regulates and monitors compliance with the rules. And in the case of Spanish PDOs, they are protected by European regulations.
What are PDOs used for?
For the consumer, primarily to guarantee specific characteristics and a high and consistent level of quality.
And for the manufacturer, it protects them from the production of similar products in other areas and helps them reach new markets, supported by the quality of the PDO.
How is the breeding of Iberian pigs?
Our 100% Iberian breed pigs are born in the field, nursed by their mothers until they are old enough to fend for themselves and start feeding on the resources of the pasture. Those piglets born in autumn will be able to enjoy their first acorns during this weaning phase, although most of them will be reserved for their older siblings, who were born a year earlier and reach the montanera phase during fattening, going from 90-100 kg to 170-180 kg solely on acorns, grass, and other natural resources of the pasture (mushrooms, roots, tubers, etc.).
What do pigs eat before the fattening phase?
They feed on the resources of the pasture, however, in the summer when resources are scarce, they are usually fed with natural feeds composed mainly of cereals and legumes. The members of the society sow these cereals and legumes (chickpeas, fava beans, vetch, oats, etc.) so that in the summer the pigs can feed on them ad libitum, that is, by grazing in the same field, without the need to harvest them.
Temperature, humidity, and maturation time of hams and shoulders.
The process of making our hams and shoulders has several phases. The first of them, salting, is done at very low temperature and high humidity. This phase lasts around 2 weeks depending on the weight of the piece and then, after settling in chambers with controlled temperature and humidity, they will move to natural cellars, where the temperature will fluctuate between 18-20 degrees in summer to 10-12 degrees in winter, a slow curing that ensures long and optimal maturation, over 30 months, achieving the awakening of aromas that a accelerated process would never achieve.