A whole ham may show a numbered band, a hanging label and a logo. They do different jobs. Separating piece identification, food information and commercial branding helps you look beyond the most visible colour in a photo.
The seal identifies an Iberian piece with colour and numbering. The label gives product information. The brand commercially identifies the product. Read all three without confusing their roles.
Three elements with three roles
The piece seal, label and brand may be close together, but look for them separately. The Spanish Iberian standard regulates identification and designation; commercial design does not replace those details.
- Seal: tamper-evident identification of the piece, with colour and an individual number.
- Label: food designation and identifying information; for Iberian products, the applicable breed and certification information too.
- Brand: commercial name or image distinguishing the product. A logo is not in itself an official seal.
The four Iberian seal colours
For hams and shoulders covered by the Iberian standard, Royal Decree 4/2014 sets out this correspondence. It concerns the identification seal, not the main colour of a box, website or photograph.
- Black: de bellota 100% ibérico.
- Red: de bellota ibérico.
- Green: de cebo de campo ibérico.
- White: de cebo ibérico.
Jamones Paco Heredia for this article
Current selection from the related collection. Check format, weight and directions on each product page.
Jamones Paco Heredia
Current selection from the related collection. Check format, weight and directions on each product page.
View the collection →For sliced ham, read the pack information
A sliced pack does not contain the entire leg with its band. For sliced or portioned cured products, the standard provides for a label matching the source seal colour, with traceable identification and the sales designation. That does not make any coloured decoration sufficient evidence.
Read whether the pack contains ham or shoulder and check the full designation. The shoulder photo in this article is a reminder of that first distinction: ham and shoulder are different products even when their feeding and breed categories match.
The selection follows the Jamones Paco Heredia catalogue. Editorial photographs illustrate formats; check the collection for current products and their details.
When the photo does not show enough detail
Open the product page and check the designation, breed percentage where applicable and certification information. If you need more, ask for a readable label image and batch identification. A small unclear photo cannot by itself confirm or rule out all product information.
Explore cebo Iberian ham, cebo de campo or bellota 100% Iberian ham. For presentation choices, see whole ham or sliced packs. The general carousel includes different ham categories, including Duroc: the Iberian seal code does not apply to every catalogue product.
Sources for checking the terminology
Iberian standard: designation, labelling and identification (BOE).