The Iberian pig, whose origins can probably be traced back to the Neolithic, when animal domestication started, is currently found in herds clustered in Spain and the central and southern part of Portugal.

The most commonly accepted theory is that the pigs were first brought to the Iberian Peninsula by the Phoenicians from the Eastern Mediterranean coast (current-day Lebanon), where they interbred with wild boars.

[1] The numbers of the Iberian breed have been drastically reduced since 1960 due to several factors such as the outbreak of African swine fever and the lowered value of animal fats.

[2] This traditional breed exhibits a good appetite and propensity to obesity, including a great capacity to accumulate intramuscular and epidermal fat.

In traditional management, animals ranged freely in sparse oak forest (dehesa in Spain, montado in Portugal), they are constantly moving around and therefore burn more calories than confined pigs.