The founding brothers, Joan, Joaquím, and Càndid Cañigueral, started a family business in Cassà de la Selva (Girona), which later became the company JOAN CAÑIGUERAL S.A., and the commercial brand MONTER was created. Later we expanded into Barcelona and the surrounding area with a center in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat.

The slaughter room FRIGORÍFICOS COSTA BRAVA S.A. was started in Riudellots de la Selva (Girona) together with two other companies. The Cañigueral Group was born as we diversified.

EMBUTIDOS MONTER, S.L. was founded, and we acquired a cured charcuterie factory in Sant Jaume de Llierca.

We created of a clean room in the Sant Jaume de Llierca factory, expanded facilities, increased the number of slicing lines, and improved capacity and productivity.

The Cañigueral family acquired the Productos Cárnicos Pirene factory in Les Planes d’Hostoles in order to continue expanding the business.

We launched the first cured turkey meat in the national Spanish market. It’s a healthier product with up to 30% less fat than other cured meats.

Our Frigorífics Costa Brava plant was approved by Chinese authorities to export boneless ham and other pork products to China.

We acquired Coopecarn Girona S.L. (Quart), which allowed for new activities with marinated and frozen meat, mostly for exporting.

Our Frigoríficos Costa Brava factory entered the Japanese market.

We achieved one of our milestones in technology by introducing autonomous robot vehicles a that circulate, take cured meats to the drying sheds, and check the curing process. A year later, the second phase began with new drying sheds.

Costa Brava is the first Spanish company approved to export white-layer pork meat to the United States after passing the most demanding standards for quality and food safety in the world.

Pernils Llémena, in partnership with Embutidos Collell (part of Cañigueral Group), began exporting Serrano ham to the US and Australian markets.

An innovative plant specializing in cutting and packaging was added to the Cañigueral Group: FRESCOS Y ELABORADOS DELISANO S.A.U. It was committed to freshness (production without stocks), worked with fresh pork, and specialized in processed products such as the widest range of gluten-free croquettes, breaded products, and burger meats. Based in Cheste (Valencia) with a workforce of more than 1,000 people.

Our traditional star product, Serrano ham, entered one of the world's major markets: Japan. Three years later (2019) the ham entered the Chinese market.

Frigoríficos Costa Brava expanded its factory in Riudellots to 439,275 square feet (40,810 square meters) with a team of more than 1,300 specialized workers. After subsequent expansion of the Vilamalla plant, it then had a total of more than 1,800 workers, more than 656,598 square feet (61,000 square meters) and a production capacity of more than 3.2 million pigs per year.

Cañigueral Group acquired the company FAR Jamón Serrano, S.A.U., located in Les Preses (Girona) with the aim of introducing an entire range of cured meats, diversifying business, and expanding sales with increased exports.

We updated our product catalogue with an innovative healthy option: chicken charcuterie in snack-type packaging, easy to eat anywhere.

We created a charcuterie package called the cuatripack with a sustainability goal: zero waste.

In February, Cañigueral Group acquired new facilities in Vilamalla (Girona), which added 220,660 square feet (20,500 square meters) and became the company's second cutting plant. The company then had 659,612 square feet (61,280 square meters) of plant space, more than 1,800 specialized workers, and a production capacity of more than 3.2 million pigs per year. 

In October, the group presented the new international brand COSTA BRAVA MEDITERRANEAN FOODS, which brings together all products from all held companies. The brand was introduced and celebrated at the SIAL PARIS International Fair.

Costa Brava Mediterranean Foods acquired the company Embutidos Caseros Collell, S.L.U. Four plants located in the province of Girona (Les Preses (1), Sant Esteve de Llémena (1), and Olot (2)) strengthened and expanded a very important area for the group: cured meats including sausages and cured ham.

The COSTA BRAVA MEDITERRANEAN FOODS portfolio expanded with beef products from the company FRICAFOR. This new and extensive beef group was added to fresh pork, prepared meat-based products, and charcuterie and snacks.

We multiplied our efforts and precautions in the difficult times during the Covid-19 pandemic so customers could continue to access the highest quality and most food-safe staple products.

We began to conduct external sustainability audits, a commitment that requires us to improve our ESG indicators year over year in the environmental, social, and governance areas. These created our true sustainability roadmap.

We expanded our Serrano ham plant by 86,111 square feet (8,000 square meters), which allowed us to grow capacity and quality through an increase in the average curing period. We continued to maintain our position as one of the main ham producers in Spain.

In Costa Brava Mediterranean Foods we use solar panels for our largest plants, and we plan to install in more plants. We also achieved 100% energy from renewable sources throughout the group.

Total emissions this year were 51,766 tons of CO2 equivalent. And we continued to promote the reduction and compensation initiatives that we started many years ago. One example: the protection of the Can Tià Volcano forest (seen in this image).