Production method: After being salted for two to four weeks, the ham is smoked for two weeks to three months, using mainly firewood from the region.
Distinctive features: The production of Presunto de Barroso PGI depends greatly from the region's cold and dry climate, which forces every household to keep a fire burning at all times, thus providing unique conditions for smoking characterised due to a light and gradual smoke supply.
Production area: The geographical area for the production of Presunto de Barroso PGI encompasses the municipalities of Boticas, Chaves and Montalegre (area traditionally known as ‘Barroso’), in the Vila Real district.
History: Due to the geographic isolation of the Barroso region, the local diet, constituted mainly of bread, potatoes and pork, became essentially limited to the local production. The countless references to the taxation of pigs and pork products in various municipal registers, including that of Montalegre, demonstrate the antiquity and the importance of these activities in this region. Presunto de Barroso PGI is an example of the preservation techniques locally developed and passed down from one generation to the next in order to assure pork meat availability throughout the year.
Product specification (pdf)
Producer group
Associação dos Produtores de Fumeiro da Terra Fria Barrosã
Control and certification body
Kiwa Sativa – Unipessoal, Lda.
Control plan
Control plan (pdf)
Publication in EU official journal
Retificação ao Regulamento (CE) n.º 1107/96 da Comissão – L290 13.11.1996
Regulamento (CE) n.º 1107/96 da Comissão de 12.06.1996
Publication in the Portuguese official journal
Despacho n.º 43/94 de 03.02.1994