The precious Spanish jamón ibérico threatened by the climate crisis
Spain's precious jamón ibérico bellota is under threat from the climate crisis as rising temperatures and low rainfall jeopardize a key ingredient in the pig feed: acorns.
In a country where pigs are as populated as people, there are many varieties of ham, but none are as revered as the jamón ibérico bellota, which sells for over €100 (£88) a kilo.
It is produced exclusively from trotters -blacks, who must spend the last month of their lives gorging on acorns (bellotas) in the dehesa, a type of oak forest unique to the west and in northwest Spain.
The problem is that, as a result of unusually hot and dry summers, the oak trees produce fewer acorns. This, together with a fall in the market price, resulted in a 20% reduction in the Iberian jamón produced last year in Extremadura, one of only four small regions that benefit from the Iberian jam em>denominación de origen< /em>.
Last year was the hottest on record in Spain and the third driest. Precipitation in Extremadura has dropped by around 35% over the past 50 years.
"The dehesa is made up of holm oaks native to climates, so it's a relic of when the climate here was different from today,” said Francisco Espárrago, the president of Señorio de Montanera, which produces top-quality jamón. "Trees are struggling to survive the long, hot, dry summers we are currently experiencing."
Even if this summer is not as extreme as 2022, Espárrago is not not optimistic." I expect this year, after surviving last summer's drought and a winter with little rain, to be the worst in the 40 years I've worked in the dehesa," he said.
Under regulations, ham producers are allowed to import acorns from elsewhere, but Espárrago don't like the idea.
"The main source is Morocco and Algeria, where of course they don't raise pigs, but I fear that importing acorns will introduce new diseases, as happened when we we imported palm trees from Egypt,” he said. The red palm weevil was introduced to Spain via Egypt in 1993 and subsequently destroyed tens of thousands of palm trees.
The best jamón is produced in some of the poorest regions of Spain and is a vital part of their local economies, providing thousands of jobs in areas that are among Europe's unemployment hotspots.
"It's not just pigs,” says Espárrago, who complains about the lack of funding to replant trees. "If the dehesa doesn't survive, there won't be a place to graze the cattle either."
Spain's precious jamón ibérico bellota is under threat from the climate crisis as rising temperatures and low rainfall jeopardize a key ingredient in the pig feed: acorns.
In a country where pigs are as populated as people, there are many varieties of ham, but none are as revered as the jamón ibérico bellota, which sells for over €100 (£88) a kilo.
It is produced exclusively from trotters -blacks, who must spend the last month of their lives gorging on acorns (bellotas) in the dehesa, a type of oak forest unique to the west and in northwest Spain.
The problem is that, as a result of unusually hot and dry summers, the oak trees produce fewer acorns. This, together with a fall in the market price, resulted in a 20% reduction in the Iberian jamón produced last year in Extremadura, one of only four small regions that benefit from the Iberian jam em>denominación de origen< /em>.
Last year was the hottest on record in Spain and the third driest. Precipitation in Extremadura has dropped by around 35% over the past 50 years.
"The dehesa is made up of holm oaks native to climates, so it's a relic of when the climate here was different from today,” said Francisco Espárrago, the president of Señorio de Montanera, which produces top-quality jamón. "Trees are struggling to survive the long, hot, dry summers we are currently experiencing."
Even if this summer is not as extreme as 2022, Espárrago is not not optimistic." I expect this year, after surviving last summer's drought and a winter with little rain, to be the worst in the 40 years I've worked in the dehesa," he said.
Under regulations, ham producers are allowed to import acorns from elsewhere, but Espárrago don't like the idea.
"The main source is Morocco and Algeria, where of course they don't raise pigs, but I fear that importing acorns will introduce new diseases, as happened when we we imported palm trees from Egypt,” he said. The red palm weevil was introduced to Spain via Egypt in 1993 and subsequently destroyed tens of thousands of palm trees.
The best jamón is produced in some of the poorest regions of Spain and is a vital part of their local economies, providing thousands of jobs in areas that are among Europe's unemployment hotspots.
"It's not just pigs,” says Espárrago, who complains about the lack of funding to replant trees. "If the dehesa doesn't survive, there won't be a place to graze the cattle either."
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