The Spanish first introduced large numbers of domesticated hogs to the Island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean in the 16th century. Because the islands had no predators and many root crops to graze on, the pigs thrived. People barbecued, smoked, salted, and or jerked the hog. In part, the Spanish Inquisition contributed to increased consumption of pork in Iberian America. Eating pork became a strategy for avoiding public suspicion that one did not adhere to Catholicism and instead practiced a native American religion, Judaism, or Islam.
