HamHam is pork from a leg cut that has been preserved by wet or dry curing, with or without smoking. As a processed meat, the term ham includes both whole cuts of meat and ones that have been mechanically formed. Ham is made around the world, including a number of regional specialties. In addition, numerous ham products have specific geographical naming protection.
Speck Alto AdigeSpeck Alto Adige is a dry-cured, lightly smokedham produced in South Tyrol, northern Italy. Parts of its production are regulated by the European Union under the protected geographical indication (PGI) status (see also: Tyrolean speck). Unlike prosciutto, speck Alto Adige is smoked (prosciutto affumicato). Inspection and quality brandSpeck Alto Adige PGI is protected by the European Union as a protected geographical indication (PGI).
Friuli-Venezia GiuliaFriuli-Venezia Giulia is one of the 20 regions of Italy and one of five autonomous regions with special statute. The regional capital is Trieste on the Gulf of Trieste, a bay of the Adriatic Sea. Friuli-Venezia Giulia has a population of 1,193,496 in an area of 7,924.36 square kilometres (3,059.61 sq mi) as of 2026.
Geographical indications and traditional specialities in the European UnionThree European Union schemes of geographical indications and traditional specialties, known as protected designation of origin (PDO), protected geographical indication (PGI), and traditional speciality guaranteed (TSG), promote and protect names of agricultural products and foodstuffs, wines and spirits. Products registered under one of the three schemes may be marked with the logo for that scheme to help identify those products.
Emilia-RomagnaEmilia-Romagna (UK: , US: , bothalso , Italian:) is an administrative region of northern Italy, comprising the historical regions of Emilia and Romagna. Its capital is Bologna. It has a population of over 4.4 million in an area of 22,509.67 km (8,691 sq mi). Emilia-Romagna is one of the wealthiest and most developed regions in Europe, with the third highest gross domestic product per capita in Italy.
Italian languageRomance languageItalian (italiano, pronounced, or lingua italiana, pronounced) is a Romance language of the Indo-European language family. It is a standardised form of literary Florentine Tuscan and, together with Sardinian, is the least differentiated language from Latin. Current estimates indicate that between 68 and 85 million people speak Italian, including approximately 64 million native speakers as of 2024.
Protected designation of originThe protected designation of origin (PDO) is a type of geographical indication of the European Union aimed at preserving the designations of origin of food-related products. The designation was created in 1992 and its main purpose is to designate products that have been produced, processed and developed in a specific geographical area, using the recognized know-how of local producers and ingredients from the region concerned.
PrefixA prefix is an affix which is placed before the stem and before the suffix of a word. Particularly in the study of languages, a prefix is also called a preformative, because it alters the form of the word to which it is affixed.
South TyrolAutonomous province in northern ItalyAutonomous province in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, ItalySouth Tyrol (German: Südtirol, locally; Italian: Alto Adige; Ladin: Südtirol), officially the Autonomous Province of Bolzano/Bozen – South Tyrol, is an autonomousprovince in northernItaly. Together with Trentino, South Tyrol forms the autonomous region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol.
Swiss sausages and cured meatsSausages and cured meats are widely consumed in Switzerland. Meat in general is consumed on a daily basis, pork being particularly ubiquitous in Swiss cuisine. Preserving meat by smoking it or by adding salt has been done for millennia in Switzerland. HistorySalt was hardly used as a means of preservation before the 2nd millennium BC, as the archaeological excavations carried out near salt resources seem to indicate.
Smoked meatSmoked meat is the result of a method of preparing red meat, white meat, and seafood which originated in the Paleolithic Era. Smoking adds flavor, improves the appearance of meat through the Maillard reaction, and when combined with curing it preserves the meat. When meat is cured then cold-smoked, the smoke adds phenols and other chemicals that have an antimicrobial effect on the meat.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.