The Interprofessional Association of the Iberian Pig (ASICI - Asociación Interprofesional del Cerdo Ibérico) presents the system of Quality Standard seals with which Iberian Hams are marketed, which helps the consumer to choose their Iberian ham thanks to the information that contribute. An identification system that guarantees that the piece is actually Iberian and indicates the type of feeding and handling that the pig has had and its breed.
About the Quality Standard seal system
The Royal Decree 4/2014, of January 10, which approves the quality standard for Iberian meat, ham, shoulder and cane loin, in order to offer the consumer all possible information on quality and origin certificate of the Iberian hams existing in the market, launched the product identification system with seals managed by the Interprofessional Association of the Iberian Pig (ASICI - Asociación Interprofesional del Cerdo Ibérico).
The four categories of Ibérico ham are differentiated by four coloured seals: black, red, green and white.
The seal system is a commitment of MAPAMA (Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and Environment) and the Iberian sector to control traceability and transparency in its productions, with the aim of offering the consumer the maximum guarantee of safety and quality.
The Spanish Ham 4 Coloured Seals Explained
Because not all Iberian Hams are equal, there is a system of coloured seals so you can instantly recognize what type of Iberian Ham you have in front of you. They key is in the seal: each colour represents a category. Black, red, green and white: 4 colours for 4 different categories of Iberian Ham!
BLACK SEAL - The black seal identifies 100% acorn-fed Iberian Ham. A seal which certifies that the pig’s mother and father are 100% Iberian, registered in the Studbook, and that the animal was fed on acorns and other natural resources from the dehesa during the fattening phase.
RED SEAL - The red seal is for acorn-fed Iberian Ham, which comes from animals which are 75% or 50% Iberian, and that during the fattening phase, were fed on acorns and other natural resources from the dehesa.
GREEN SEAL - The green seal corresponds to Cebo de Campo Iberian Ham and can come from animals which are 100%, 75%, 50% Iberian, and during their fattening phase they were fed on cereals, legumes and wild herbs.
WHITE SEAL - The white seal identifies Cebo Iberian ham, and can come from animals which are 100%, 75%, 50% Iberian, fed on farms, on a diet of fodder made from cereals and legumes.
Source: ASICI
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