Varanegra smoked ham produced by Salsicharia Estremocense (SEL) was awarded with a gold medal in the “Hams Quality “competition held in Frankfurt, Germany.
Varanegra already has eight gold medals, three of them international since the start of its production in 2016.
The ‘International Quality Hams Competition’ has been one of the classics of IFFA’s competition week over the years.
This time more than 300 cured and cooked hams from all over the world were tested, evaluated and awarded. At the end of the day of competition 28 products were awarded: gold medals, four silver medals and a bronze medal. The Varanegra (of alentejo pork) was one of 28 awarded with gold. “Especially noticeable from this year’s IFFA, was particularly important for the Europeans from Spain, Portugal and Italy”, revealed a SEL press release.
The Varanegra black pork ham is raised in the field in the Alentejo. “The freedom in which the black alentejo pig breed is bred, being fed mainly on acorn, grass, and everything that is offered, provides a premium featured product; its fat being rich in oleic acid with olive oil-like features has nutritious properties that promote the cholesterol reduction and the vitamins contribute to muscular and bone growth and development, informs the company.
Its meat is juicy, tender, with pleasant aromas, which makes it very tasty and provide an international recognition. The creation of Porco Alentejano (pig from Alentejo) is currently regulated by a Portuguese entity, ANCPA – Associação Nacional dos Criadores do Porco Alentejano (National Association of Porco Alentejano Breeders), which together with ACEPA – Agrupamento Complementar de Empresas do Porco Alentejano (Complementary Group of Porco Alentejano), that certifies them as Porco Alentejano: only the animals whose creators carefully fulfill all required creative processes are certified.
