Social evolution and the search for prosperity led the island, as in any other part of the world in the history of evolution as a social group, to develop livestock farming activities to obtain vital sustenance or economic income, whose passage through progress has left an important legacy in the island's culture, and specifically in its gastronomy. This activity was present since the arrival of the first settlers of La Palma, the Benahoaritas, a society in which shepherding determined population movements to a large extent between the midlands and the summits, in search of sustenance for livestock.

Today, there are several companies and islanders who make a living from livestock farming. In this way, over time and thanks to human selection, native breeds such as the black pig, the palm tree goat, the palm tree cow, the Canarian jabada hen and the palm tree sheep have emerged.