Bringing back the flavours of a dying tradition from the people of the Algarve mountains using “nearly lost” techniques
Twelve years ago, in the heart of the Algarve, in Serra do Caldeirão, a new venture was created to bring back the flavours of a dying tradition.
Sitting on a 15-hectare property in a village with a dozen residents, near Vaqueiros in Alcoutim, the Feito no Zambujal (Made in Zambujal) brand combines the breeding of Iberian pigs with the production and curing of high-quality meats and sausages.
Rui Jerónimo, who left his job in banking to invest in his grandparents’ hometown of Zambujal, runs this family business using sustainable and traditional methods to produce food that honours the region’s cultural roots, relying on techniques that have been “nearly lost” to time and the depopulation of the area.
The ultimate goal is to preserve local knowledge by using raw materials of “exceptional quality”, through a business model that respects nature, the rhythm of time and artisanal meat curing.
“We’re safeguarding the traditional knowledge of the people of the Algarve mountains,” Rui Jerónimo stresses.
The business rears only Iberian pigs, an animal with its own characteristics, which grows slowly and yields top-quality meat.
In its first year, Feito no Zambujal began by raising and processing around 40 pigs, but nowadays they aim for up to 200 per season.
The free-range pigs are raised outdoors, in an area where small farms are predominant, with small parcels where the animals are divided per age so they can grow naturally to adulthood.
Feito no Zambujal’s production follows a seasonal calendar that preserves the essence of tradition: the slaughtering and processing period takes place in autumn and winter, between October and April, when the weather conditions are ideal for curing the meat.
For the remainder of the year, the five-person team works on the land upkeep and on marketing the products to meet the increased demand from restaurants and hotels, especially in the Algarve.
Besides the strict timeframe, the team relies on ancestral knowledge, learned from the elders of the family, such as meat curing.
The result is a variety of products ranging from lard, paio and chouriço (Portuguese chorizo) to fresh meat and presunto (Portuguese prosciutto) cured over long periods, one of the brand’s best sellers.
“Good presunto should be cured for between two and a half and three years and should be sourced from a high-quality animal. It should also be salted for a short time. I don’t know anyone else in the Algarve who does it like this. Another reason we stand out is, we don’t use additives or chemical preservatives. We’re all natural. For our chouriço, for example, the peppers we use to make the curing liquid are grown and prepared by us,” Rui Jerónimo explains the reasons behind their products’ “prestige and uniqueness in the market.”
Their wide range of products is available at some of the best restaurants in the Algarve, from Odeceixe to Vila Real de Santo António, but also in Lisbon.
Other cities such as Évora, Aveiro and Porto are also familiar with the quality of the brand’s sausages, although these sales are more sporadic.
In the capital, the Insaciável restaurant, Bairro Alto Hotel and Albatroz Hotel, in Cascais, are regular customers.
In the Algarve, Feito no Zambujal products can be found at Robinson Quinta da Ria hotel, Viceroy at Ombria Algarve, Verdelago Resort and Vilalara Grand Hotel Algarve. As for restaurants, the list of notable clients includes Bon Bon, Noélia, Austa, Numa, A Ver Tavira, Nó de Gosto, Naperon and Cafézique.
But Feito no Zambujal goes beyond just producing sausages and pork products. The brand promotes a fully immersive experience in Algarve traditions, as the property frequently opens its doors to visitors, where both customers and curious guests can learn more about their work and the environment in which the animals live.
“We’ve hosted everyone from Portuguese tourists to foreigners living in the Algarve, as well as groups and teams from the restaurants we work with,” says Rui Jerónimo. The brand also organises exclusive events, such as lunches and dinners, where chefs prepare dishes using their meats.
As a result of the visits and the public’s increased interest in their products, he decided to expand the business with a new rural tourism project.
“I’ve had this idea for some time, it has been maturing, but construction has already started. We will have three small apartments and a slightly larger building, and will be able to accommodate around 18 people in total. We want the building to blend with the region’s landscape and are genuinely committed to the traditions of the land, just as we are with our products; giving them a very distinctive identity, so that people can really feel the difference,” says Rui Jerónimo.
If everything goes according to plan, they will be welcoming the first guests by the end of 2025.
For the entrepreneur, the goal is not only to expand the business, but also to revitalise Zambujal and halt the rural exodus that threatens many villages in the Algarve hinterland.
Today, thanks to this project and the jobs it created, the village has gained new residents.
“We want to bring life back to Zambujal, give our village a new opportunity and hopefully attract people to live here again,” says Rui Jerónimo.
This social commitment, combined with the quality of their products, makes Feito no Zambujal a prime example of how entrepreneurship can promote sustainable development and bring old traditions back to life.
As for the future, expanding into the international market is not yet a priority for the brand, which is committed to sustainable growth.
The focus is on continuing to serve the local and national market, where demand is already intense and favours the short-supply chain model.
Rui Jerónimo believes that, over time, they will be able to explore new markets, but without compromising on the brand’s production capacity and identity.
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