The European Commission recently released a Final Report Evaluation support study on Geographical Indications and Traditional Specialities Guaranteed Protected in the EU.
The European Union protects almost 3,400 names of agri-food products including agricultural products and food, covering also fishery and aquaculture products; wines, spirit drinks and aromatised wine products – under its EU quality schemes.
Geographical indications establish intellectual property rights for specific products, whose qualities are specifically linked to the area of production. Those include Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) and Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) for agrifood products and wine as well as Geographical Indication (GI) for spirit drinks and aromatised wines.
Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (TSG) highlights the traditional aspects such as the way the food and agricultural product is made or its composition, without being linked to a specific geographical area. The name of a product being registered as a TSG protects it against falsification and misuse.
The key objectives of the GI and TSG schemes are to:-
- ensure the protection of the names of specific products and traditional production methods, including the protection of intellectual property rights (IPR)
- safeguard the integrity of the internal market
- reach fair competition for farmers and producers
- provide fair return to farmers and producer
- provide clear and reliable information on the product to consumers
- create a competitive landscape with a level playing field for producers in rural areas.
Read the entire 362 page Report here