Melva de Andalucía

Melva de Andalucía is a PGI covering canned fillets of bullet tuna and frigate tuna — species Auxis rochei and Auxis thazard — produced by non-industrial methods in designated municipalities along the Andalusian coast. Fish are skinned by hand without chemical products and packed exclusively in olive or sunflower oil, preserving the natural characteristics of the fish.

About this designation

Registered as a PGI on 19 March 2003 under file number PGI-ES-0280 (eAmbrosia identifier EUGI00000013757), Melva de Andalucía covers preserved bullet tuna and frigate tuna produced from fish of the species Auxis rochei and Auxis thazard. The geographical area is defined by named municipalities in five Andalusian provinces: Almería, Cádiz, Granada, Huelva and Málaga. Production and packaging must take place within registered preserving plants located inside that area. The specification requires non-industrial processing methods: heads are removed, fish are gutted, washed, boiled in fresh salted water with controlled pH and chlorine levels, and then skinned by hand without the use of chemical products. Skinned and boned fillets are placed in metal or glass containers and sterilised by heat treatment. The specification permits only olive oil or sunflower oil as the packing medium. The inspection body is the Consejo Regulador de las Denominaciones Específicas «Caballa de Andalucía» y «Melva de Andalucía», which maintains a register of qualifying preserving plants, conducts regular inspections, and issues numbered labels authorised for use on compliant products. Owners of registered plants are required to maintain a daily record of raw material used and finished products produced.

Source: The register document this entry was written from · retrieved August 26, 2026

Distinctive facts

• Registered as a PGI on 19 March 2003 under file number PGI-ES-0280; eAmbrosia identifier EUGI00000013757.
• The specification permits only two species: Auxis rochei and Auxis thazard; no other species may be used.
• Hand-skinning without chemical products is a mandatory production step; chemical skinning is explicitly excluded by the specification.
• Fish must be packed exclusively in olive oil or sunflower oil; no other packing medium is permitted.

Tasting notes

Andalusian frigate-tuna (small bonito-family fish) IGP, traditional Andalusian canning. Firm flesh, oily-fish flavor.

HoReCa use

Melva de Andalucía is used in Andalusian tapas and in preparations such as melva con pimientos.

Packaging

• can-tin-fillets-115g
• can-tin-fillets-160g
• glass-jar-200g