Case T-223/25: Action brought on 4 April 2025 – Emmentaler Switzerland v Commission
Date: 2025-04-04
Institutions: General Court
Subjects: EU Member State, Switzerland, World Intellectual Property Organisation, designation of origin, hard cheese, intellectual property, international agreement, labelling, product designation








C_202502909EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
C series













C/2025/2909


2.6.2025






Action brought on 4 April 2025 – Emmentaler Switzerland v Commission


(Case T-223/25)

(C/2025/2909)
Language of the case: German

Parties


Applicant: Emmentaler Switzerland (Bern, Switzerland) (represented by: M. Pemsel, lawyer)

Defendant: European Commission

Form of order sought

The applicant claims that the Court should:






—


annul Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/107 of 23 January 2025 refusing protection in the Union of the Appellation of Origin ‘Emmentaler’ registered in the International Register of Appellations of Origin and Geographical Indications of the Geneva Act;










—


order the defendant to pay the costs of the proceedings.





Pleas in law and main arguments

In support of the action, the applicant relies on one plea in law, alleging infringement of Article 5(1) and Article 7 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1753 (1) in conjunction with Article 46(1) and Article 28 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1143. (2)

The applicant claims that the defendant was wrong to refuse protection in the European Union in respect of the international registration of the geographical appellation of origin ‘Emmentaler’. Contrary to the view taken by the defendant, it is not a generic term within the meaning of Article 28(1) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1143.
No reliable findings have been made by the defendant to support its assessment.
On the contrary, the term ‘Emmentaler’ is protected as a geographical appellation of origin under a number of international agreements. The directly applicable Stresa Convention of 1 June 1951 protects ‘Emmentaler’ on its own (see Annex B to the Convention). It has thus been recognised in international law since the 1950s that the term ‘Emmentaler’ on its own is reserved for cheese from Switzerland. This has already been confirmed by Italian courts.
Furthermore, there are bilateral State treaties between the Swiss Confederation, on the one hand, and Germany, France, Spain, Portugal, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, on the other. In those treaties also, ‘Emmentaler’ on its own is protected as a geographical appellation of origin.
On the basis of the aforementioned protection of ‘Emmentaler’ as a geographical appellation of origin, that term cannot have degenerated to one that is generic.


(1)  Regulation (EU) 2019/1753 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2019 on the action of the Union following its accession to the Geneva Act of the Lisbon Agreement on Appellations of Origin and Geographical Indications (OJ 2019 L 271, p. 1).

(2)  Regulation (EU) 2024/1143 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 April 2024 on geographical indications for wine, spirit drinks and agricultural products, as well as traditional specialities guaranteed and optional quality terms for agricultural products, amending Regulations (EU) No 1308/2013, (EU) 2019/787 and (EU) 2019/1753 and repealing Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 (OJ L 2024/1143).


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/2909/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)