Jamón ibérico
Jamón ibérico (; ), "Iberian ham" is a variety of "jamón" or "presunto", a type of cured leg of pork produced in Spain and, to a lesser extent, Portugal. Description. Pork products made from Black Iberian breed pigs receive the "ibérico/a" denomination. As such, jamón ibérico is the dry-cured ham produced from livestock of said breeds. According to Spain's "denominación de origen" rules and current regulations on "jamón", "jamón ibérico" must be made from pure breed or cross-bred pigs - as long as they are at least 50% Black Iberian in their ancestry. Duroc pig is the  only breed allowed to mix in order to keep official "ibérico" denomination on any Spanish pork meat product. "Jamón ibérico", especially the one labeled "de bellota", has a smooth texture and rich, savory taste. The fat content is relatively high compared to "jamón serrano." A good "ibérico" ham has regular flecks of intramuscular fat known as marbling. Production. Location. The black Iberian pig lives primarily in the central and southwestern region of the Iberian Peninsula, which includes both Portugal and Spain. In Spain, the black Iberian pig is typically found in the provinces of Huelva, Córdoba, Cáceres, Badajoz, Salamanca, Ciudad  Real, and Seville. In Portugal, the central and southern regions have an abundance of this breed, with a predilection for the Alentejo region. In Portugal, the black Iberian pig is commonly referred to as "porco preto ibérico" or "porco alentejano". The black Iberian pig is ingrained in the local Portuguese culture and tradition, with annual festivals in their honor, such as the Feira do Porco Preto, an annual festival in the region of Ourique. Process. Immediately after weaning, the piglets are fattened on barley and maize for several weeks. The pigs are then allowed to roam in pasture and oak  groves to feed naturally on grass, herbs, acorns, chestnuts, and roots, until the slaughtering time approaches. At that point, the diet may be strictly limited to chestnuts, or acorns for the best-quality "jamón ibérico", or maybe a mix of acorns and commercial feed for lesser qualities. The hams from the slaughtered pigs are salted and left to begin drying for two weeks, after which they are rinsed and left to dry for another four to six weeks. The curing process then takes at least twelve months, although some producers cure their "jamones ibéricos" for up to 48 months. Preservation  and storage. Cured meats have been specifically produced to be edible for a long time. The curing process was used for generations to preserve pork before the invention of refrigeration. During the curing process the meat is dried in salt, which helps to prevent the build-up of harmful organisms, and then is hung to be exposed to the elements, producing an exterior layer of mold which helps to protect the meat inside. Normally, jamón is sold either sliced and vacuum-packed or as a whole leg. Vacuum-packed jamón may last up to 100 days at room temperature because  the packaging seals out oxygen and slows the aging process. A whole leg does not last as long. If the jamón is regularly cut and covered with clingfilm or cheesecloth, an opened leg may last for three months. Freezing is not recommended, since it damages the fibers in jamón and alters flavours. Commercial grading and labeling. The hams are labeled according to the pigs' diet and the percentage of the pigs' Iberian ancestry, with an acorn diet and pure-bred Iberians being most desirable. The current labeling system, based on a series of color-coded labels, was phased in starting  in January 2014. Some notes: Pata Negra. Meaning literally "black foot or paw", pata negra is a commercial label for "jamón ibérico". In colloquial Spanish and popular culture, it is used as a superlative or synonym of "the best". It referred to the color of the pigs' hoof, which are white or fair-colored in most traditional and commercial pork breeds in Spain, but always black in the Black Iberian breed. The term used to be liberally applied in both Spanish and Portuguese, leading to quality and markets disputes, since the term was used interchangeably both as "great quality jamón  (of any breed) and ibérico jamón" (of any quality). Along reputable "pata negra" producers, there were plenty of doubtful producers using the term in their labeling. "Jamón" has also been sold unlabeled in small towns and unpretentious establishments all around rural Spain. While as a general rule, a black hoof should indicate an "Ibérico" ham, the ancestry could be exceedingly cross-bred or untraceable, and also there were cases of ham sourced from rare breeds with dark hoofs, and even manually darkened hoofs. Modern regulations only allow the use of the wording "pata negra" for black label "jamón" sourced from  acorn-fed pure-bred Black Iberian pork. Notable producers and protected designations. Notable producers of "Ibérico" are recognized by both the regulatory bodies of Spain, and the European Union. Their designations are legally protected. Some of them include: Consumption and popularity. "Ibérico" encompasses some of the most expensive ham produced in the world, and its fatty marbled texture has made it very popular as a delicacy, with a hard to fulfill global demand comparable to that of Kobe beef. Around 13,000 metric tons of "jamón ibérico" and associated by-products were consumed in Spain in 2017, leading to an estimated  4 billion euros in retail sales. The demand keeps growing while the availability is stagnated, as the production is maxing out to ensure quality. This is leading to a rise in the price of "jamón ibérico", which is expected to double between 2017 and 2021. Since "jamón ibérico" production and export is limited, buyer should beware and not fall victim of retail or wholesale bait-and-switch or fraud similar to that in olive oil export fraud, since it has been estimated that a sizable portion of both local market and exports are not actually "ibérico". Availability in the United  States. Prior to 2005, only pork raised and slaughtered outside Spain was allowed to be processed in Spain for export to the United States of America, due to fear of swine fever. In 2005, the first slaughterhouse in Spain was approved by the US Department of Agriculture to produce "ibérico" by-products for export to the United States. The first "jamones ibéricos" were released for sale in the United States in December 2007, with the "bellota" ones following in July 2008.