Voluntary Report - public distribution

**Date:** 8/28/2003

**GAIN Report Number:** E23165

E23165

**European Union**

**Trade Policy Monitoring**

**EU releases final list of Geographical Indicators for Cancun**

**2003**

**Approved by:**

![](media/image1.wmf)Norval Francis

#### U.S. Mission to the EU, Brussels

**Prepared by:**

Peter Talks

**Report Highlights:**

The European Commission has released a final list of Geographical
Indicators which it will present to the WTO at Cancun in September. The
EU is likely to demand that these 40 products be accepted by WTO members
as non-generic, protected terms as part of the Market Access package for
the Doha Round Negotiations.

Includes PSD Changes: No

Includes Trade Matrix: No

Unscheduled Report

Brussels USEU \[BE2\]

\[E2\]

The European Commission has released a final list of Geographical
Indicators which it will present to the WTO at Cancun in September. The
EU is likely to demand that these 40 products be accepted by WTO members
as non-generic, protected terms.

Included in the list are products such as Feta cheese despite a pending
court case at the European Court of Justice taken by Denmark and Germany
who argue that Feta is a generic term. Should Germany and Denmark win
their case, then Feta would be removed from the list as it would be
considered generic.

Earlier versions of the GI list included the UK's Stilton cheese and
Denmark's Danablu, though these countries requested that these products
be removed from the list. Jambon de Bayonne was also removed from
earlier versions of the list. Greece argued very strongly for the
inclusion of Feta, Ouzo and Kalamata Olives, though only the first two
were accepted by the 133 Committee in the Council.

In July, at the Montreal WTO Trade Meeting, US Trade Representative
Robert Zoellick was critical of the EU's GI stance, "European countries
spent 500 years colonizing us, and then we finally get free \-- and now
they want to have us to pay for the names". Commenting further on the
list of names, he said "I noticed a lot of the names are in English,
too, and I thought that was my language, not some of theirs". (Sherry,
present on early versions of the list, has been replaced with the
Spanish language version Jerez).

**Related reports from USEU Brussels:**

  --------------- ------------------------------------ ------------------
  **Report        **Title**                            **Date Released**
  Number**                                             

  E23108          EU ruling on geographical indicators 6/17/03

  E23152          Geographical Indications: An         8/08/03
                  Overview of the Arguments            
                  Surrounding Protections              

  E23154          EU and US present joint framework on 8/14/03
                  agriculture negotiations to WTO      
  --------------- ------------------------------------ ------------------

**Visit our website:** our website
**[www.useu.be/agri/usda.html]{.underline}** provides a broad range of
useful information on EU import rules and food laws and allows easy
access to USEU reports, trade information and other practical
information. E-mail: <AgUSEUBrussels@usda.gov>

**Other Useful Websites:**

Office of the United States Trade Representative

<http://www.ustr.gov/>

United States Patent and Trademark Office

<http://www.uspto.gov/>

Full text version of TRIPS agreement:
<http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/trips_e/t_agm3b_e.htm#3>

GI protection in the European Union:

<http://europa.eu.int/scadplus/leg/en/lvb/l21097.htm>

Full text of the Commission Press Release including GI list follows
overleaf:

  -----------------------------------------------------------------------
  [DN: IP/03/1178]{.underline}     [Date: 28/08/2003]{.underline}

  -----------------------------------------------------------------------

> TXT:
> [FR](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/03/1178|0|RAPID&lg=FR&display=)
> [EN](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/03/1178|0|RAPID&lg=EN&display=)
> [DE](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/03/1178|0|RAPID&lg=DE&display=)
> [ES](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/03/1178|0|RAPID&lg=ES&display=)
> [IT](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/03/1178|0|RAPID&lg=IT&display=)
>
> PDF:
> [FR](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.getfile=gf&doc=IP/03/1178|0|RAPID&lg=FR&type=PDF)
> [EN](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.getfile=gf&doc=IP/03/1178|0|RAPID&lg=EN&type=PDF)
> [DE](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.getfile=gf&doc=IP/03/1178|0|RAPID&lg=DE&type=PDF)
> [ES](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.getfile=gf&doc=IP/03/1178|0|RAPID&lg=ES&type=PDF)
> [IT](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.getfile=gf&doc=IP/03/1178|0|RAPID&lg=IT&type=PDF)
>
> DOC:
> [FR](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.getfile=gf&doc=IP/03/1178|0|RAPID&lg=FR&type=DOC)
> [EN](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.getfile=gf&doc=IP/03/1178|0|RAPID&lg=EN&type=DOC)
> [DE](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.getfile=gf&doc=IP/03/1178|0|RAPID&lg=DE&type=DOC)
> [ES](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.getfile=gf&doc=IP/03/1178|0|RAPID&lg=ES&type=DOC)
> [IT](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.getfile=gf&doc=IP/03/1178|0|RAPID&lg=IT&type=DOC)
>
> **IP/03/1178**
>
> Brussels, 28 August 2003

**WTO talks: EU steps up bid for better protection of regional quality
products**

> ***EU Member States cleared a short list of 41 EU regional quality
> products whose names the EU wants to recuperate. This list will be
> negotiated in the agriculture negotiations within the Doha Development
> Agenda. Today\'s shortlist contains well established European quality
> products whose names are being abused today, such as Roquefort cheese,
> Parma ham or Rioja wine. In order to prevent current non-abused
> geographical indications (GIs) being usurped in the future, the EU is
> also negotiating the establishment of a multilateral register of GIs
> as well as the extension of the protection foreseen for wines and
> spirits to products other than wines and spirits.***
>
> *"I am pleased that our Member States have cleared this list. Together
> with our allies, the EU will do its utmost to achieve better
> protection for regional quality products, from Europe\'s Roquefort
> Cheese to India\'s Darjeeling tea, from Guatemala\'s Antigua coffee to
> Morocco\'s Argan oil in the WTO talks. This is not about
> protectionism. It is about fairness. It is simply not acceptable that
> the EU cannot sell its genuine Italian Parma Ham in Canada because the
> trade mark "Parma Ham" is reserved for a ham produced in Canada"*, EU
> Farm Commissioner Franz Fischler said.
>
> *"Geographical Indications offer the best protection to quality
> products which are marketed by relying on their origin and reputation
> and other special characteristics linked to such an origin. They
> reward investment in quality by our producers. Abuses in third
> countries undermine the reputation of EU products and create confusion
> for consumers. We want this to cease for the most usurped products in
> the world"*, EU Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy added.
>
> The WTO negotiations on GIs focus on three main issues:

-   the establishment of a multilateral register of GIs (TRIPs),

-   the extension of the protection foreseen for wines and spirits to
    other products (TRIPs)

-   and the claw-back of certain EU\'s GIs whose names are usurped
    worldwide (Agriculture).

> The EU and countries like India, Thailand, Kenya, Switzerland, Turkey
> and several Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Hungary,
> support an enhanced protection of GIs in the WTO negotiations. Some of
> them have presented specific proposals in the WTO.
>
> **Why Geographical Indications (GIs) are important - not only to the
> EU**
>
> It is in the general interest to ensure that export products whose
> reputation and/or characteristics and quality are linked to their
> unique geographical origin due to a particular geographical
> environment with its inherent natural and/or human factors, are
> protected from the use of that denomination by other producers in
> other parts of the world.
>
> This is why the EU will be pushing hard for tougher rules to protect
> high quality and regional products, a position we are confident will
> be supported by other exporting countries with similar interests. The
> EU argues that consumer demand for specific products from specific
> regions provides sound business opportunities for producers all over
> the world. But to ensure that producers and consumers get a fair deal,
> these products will need to be protected against usurpation.
>
> An essential part of the value of many agricultural products is the
> well-established link to the territories where they are produced. This
> is expressed in Geographical Indications. Examples of GIs include
> Italian Parma Ham, French Roquefort cheese, India\'s Darjeeling tea,
> Sri Lanka\'s Ceylon tea, Guatemala\'s Antigua coffee, Morocco\'s Argan
> oil, or Switzerland\'s Etivaz cheese. If not protected, the value of
> such products is seriously eroded.
>
> In order to remedy this situation, in January 2003, the EC proposed
> that a short list of names currently used by producers other than the
> right-holders in the country of origin should be established so as to
> prohibit such use. The Commission believes it is now time to clarify
> in detail the names that the EC wants to be included in this list, so
> that WTO Members can have a more focused discussion on the issue and
> move the negotiations forward.
>
> The names the EC intends to protect are listed in the attached Annex.
> These names are included in the EU\'s register of GIs and have been
> selected on the basis of the fact that, in many third countries, they
> are claimed to be generic terms and/or have been registered as
> trademarks by local producers. Attention has been focused on those
> third countries where these kinds of abuses havebeen most frequently
> observed and which are also the most important markets for these
> products.
>
> There is a major difference with trademarks or branded goods: the
> linkage with the territory. Trademarks can be sold and delocalised.
> Not the geographical indication. The trademark is an exclusive
> individual right. The geographical indication is accessible to any
> producer of the locality or region concerned.
>
> Geographical indications strengthen competitiveness. In Europe this is
> a strategic tool in the development of our agriculture. This can also
> be true at international level, where they can contribute to economic
> development, particularly for raw materials exchanged at world level.
> The case of coffee is significant. International trade in coffee is
> almost liberalised, but an excess of production has led to a world
> wide collapse of prices. Only high quality coffees of a given
> geographical origin obtain higher prices. This experience shows that
> geographical indications, or similar steps, encourage quality rather
> than quantity.
>
> Further information on why Geographical Indications matter can be
> found at:
>
> http://europa.eu.int/comm/agriculture/foodqual/quali1_en.htm
>
> <http://europa.eu.int/comm/trade/issues/sectoral/intell_property/argu_en.htm>
>
> In addition, all the EC\'s proposals regarding GIs (both on the
> multilateral register and extension) can be found at:
>
> <http://europa.eu.int/comm/trade/issues/sectoral/intell_property/wto_nego/index_en.htm>
>
> **Annex**
>
> **Geographical indications originating in the European Communities**
> [^(1)^](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/03/#file.tmp_Foot_1)
> [^(2)^](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/03/#file.tmp_Foot_2)

+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > **Wines & spirits**                                                 |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Beaujolais                                                          |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Bordeaux                                                            |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Bourgogne                                                           |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Chablis                                                             |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Champagne                                                           |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Chianti                                                             |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Cognac                                                              |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Grappa di Barolo, del Piemonte, di Lombardia, del Trentino, del     |
| > Friuli, del Veneto, dell\'Alto Adige                                |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Graves                                                              |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Liebfrau(en)milch                                                   |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Malaga                                                              |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Marsala                                                             |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Madeira                                                             |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Médoc                                                               |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Moselle                                                             |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Ouzo                                                                |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Porto                                                               |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Rhin                                                                |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Rioja                                                               |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Saint-Emilion                                                       |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Sauternes                                                           |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Jerez, Xerez                                                        |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > **Other products**                                                  |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Asiago                                                              |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Azafrán de la Mancha                                                |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Comté                                                               |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Feta                                                                |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Fontina                                                             |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Gorgonzola                                                          |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Grana Padano                                                        |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Jijona y Turrón de Alicante                                         |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Manchego                                                            |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Mortadella Bologna                                                  |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Mozzarella di Bufala Campana                                        |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Parmigiano Reggiano                                                 |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Pecorino Romano                                                     |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Prosciutto di Parma                                                 |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Prosciutto di San Daniele                                           |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Prosciutto Toscano                                                  |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Queijo São Jorge                                                    |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Reblochon                                                           |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| > Roquefort                                                           |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+

> ^[(1)](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/03/#file.tmp_Ref_1)***In\ conformity\ with\ the\ ECs\ proposal\ of\ modalities,\ the\ protection\ proposed\ also\ covers\ translations,\ such\ as\ "Burgundy",\ "Champaña",\ "Coñac",\ "Port",\ "Sherry",\ "Parmesan/o",\ "Parma\ ham",\ etc.\ Transliterations\ in\ other\ alphabets,\ such\ as\ "ÊÎÍÜßÊ"\ for\ Cognac,\ are\ also\ covered.***^
>
> ^[(2)](http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/03/#file.tmp_Ref_2)The\ present\ list\ will\ be\ completed\ with\ geographical\ indications\ originating\ in\ the\ Acceding\ States\ (to\ the\ EU)^