Publication of an application for registration of a name pursuant to Article 50(2), point (a), of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs
Date: 2025-12-10
Institutions: Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, European Commission
Subjects: Türkiye, consumer information, cream, designation of origin, labelling, product designation, quality control of agricultural products




C_202506665EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
C series













C/2025/6665


10.12.2025






Publication of an application for registration of a name pursuant to Article 50(2), point (a), of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs
(C/2025/6665)

Following this publication, the authorities of a Member State or of a third country, or a natural or legal person having a legitimate interest and established or resident in a third country, may lodge, in accordance with Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1143 of the European Parliament and of the Council (1) an opposition with the Commission within three months from the date of this publication.
The product specification referred to in Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 is available in the Union register of geographical indications.
SINGLE DOCUMENT


                     ‘Afyon Kaymağı’
                  


EU No: PDO-TR-03224 – 1.4.2024
                  


PDO (x) PGI ( )

1.   Name(s) [of PDO or PGI]


               ‘Afyon Kaymağı’
            
2.   Member State or Third Country

Türkiye
3.   Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff

3.1.   Type of product

Class 1.4. Other products of animal origin (eggs, honey, various dairy products except butter etc.)

Combined Nomenclature code

Code 04 – DAIRY PRODUCE; BIRDS’ EGGS; NATURAL HONEY; EDIBLE PRODUCTS OF ANIMAL ORIGIN, NOT ELSEWHERE SPECIFIED OR INCLUDED
Code 0403  – Yogurt; buttermilk, curdled milk and cream, kephir and other fermented or acidifed milk and cream, whether or not con centrated or containing added sugar or other sweetening matter or flavoured or containing added fruit, nuts or cocoa
3.2.   Description of the product to which the name in (1) applies


                  ‘Afyon Kaymağı’ is a layer of clotted cream 2-3 cm thick, homogeneous, creamy texture, bright white, slightly sweet, and rich in milk fat. Due to its high fat content, it behaves like semihard cheese at refrigerator temperature but melts readily in mouth. It is obtained by heat-treating the Anatolian buffalo milk raised in Afyonkarahisar province in a shallow container over low heat for a long period time until a thick cream forms on the surface. It has a slightly sweet and waxy taste with slight wine-lees and green notes.
Some compositional features of ‘Afyon Kaymağı’ as follows:












—


Total solids (%):






65,0 ≤










—


Fat (%):






60,0 ≤










—


Protein (%):






0,5 ≤










—


Carbohydrate (%):






0,5 ≤










—


Ash (%):






0,5 ≤





                  ‘Afyon Kaymağı’ has a homogeneous and spreadable texture. It is always bright white, even if Anatolian buffalos are fed green grass. Free fatty acids, C6:0, C10:0, C14:0, C16:0, C18:1, C18:2, and C18:3 are the main compounds that have positive effect on the aroma of ‘Afyon Kaymağı’.
3.3.   Feed (for products of animal origin only) and raw materials (for processed products only)

One factor contributing to the characteristic features of ‘Afyon Kaymağı’ is the feeding regime of Anatolian buffaloes. Anatolian buffalos must be fed under Afyonkarahisar conditions. Poppy seed cake produced in the region should be included in the ration. Anatolian buffaloes are fed fodder according to the season, dry clover, and fresh reeds called ‘frig’ grown in wetlands and fed in pastures with their unique flora. Due to its harsh climate and geographical features, Afyonkarahisar has unique flora in its pastures. There are 1 800 species and subspecies taxa belonging to 110 families identified in the Afyonkarahisar flora. In addition, there are 234 endemic species in Afyonkarahisar. More importantly, poppy seed cake (locally known as haşkeş) produced in the region should be included in the ration of Anatolian buffalos. The ratio is poppy seed cake in the ratio varies 3 to 5 %. All the feed and the raw material (milk) comes from the geographical area.
3.4.   Specific steps in production that must take place in the identified geographical area

All production steps should be performed in the geographical area.
3.5.   Specific rules concerning slicing, grating, packaging, etc. of the product the registered name refers to

—
3.6.   Specific rules concerning labelling of the product the registered name refers to

In addition to the compulsory information provided for by legislation on the labelling and presentation of foodstuffs, labels must include the following:






—


The name of the designation ‘Afyon Kaymağı’,










—


Trade name and address or short name and address or registered mark of the producer,










—


European Union PDO logo,










—


The following logo:









4.   Concise definition of the geographical area


               ‘Afyon Kaymağı’ is produced within the borders of Afyonkarahisar province. It is located on the southwestern edge of the plain of the same name in the Central Western Anatolia Section of the Aegean Region. The mathematical location of the province is approximately between the 37°47’–39°12’ north parallels and the 29°50’–31°38’ east meridians. Afyonkarahisar province is surrounded by the provinces of Uşak from the west, Kütahya from the northwest, Eskişehir from the north, Konya from the east, Isparta from the southeast, Burdur from the south and Denizli from the southwest. Afyonkarahisar province has 18 districts: Merkez, Başmakçı, Bayat, Bolvadin, Çay, Çobanlar, Dazkırı, Dinar, Emirdağ, Evciler, Hocalar, İhsaniye, İscehisar, Kızılören, Sandıklı, Sinanpaşa, Şuhut and Sultandağı.
5.   Link with the geographical area

The link based on the product’s characteristics (colour, texture, and flavor) results from the natural and human factors in the geographical area.

Specificity of the product

The most important feature of ‘Afyon Kaymağı’ is the use of Anatolian buffalos’ milk, which is fed under Afyonkarahisar conditions and has poppy seed caking in their ration. It has a distinctive taste and aroma due to this nutritional regime. It has a sightly sweet and waxy taste with slight wine-lees and green notes. The bright white colour and homogeneous, creamy and easily spreadable texture are directly influenced by the quality of the Anatolian buffalo milk, fed under Afyonkarahisar conditions. This is because because buffalos convert yellowish carotene from plants into vitamin A, a colorless compound. Since there is no fermentation in production, the aroma of the ‘Afyon Kaymağı’ is composed of natural milk aroma compounds, aroma components forming during the long heating time, and those from feeding, and/or limited biochemical reactions.
Furthermore, the waxy taste with slight wine-less and green notes is uniquely-derived from the feeding regime of the Anatolian buffalos with the geographical area. The rich biodiversity of aromatic plants in the natural pastures of Afyonkarahisar, coupled with the specific traditional practise of incorporating poppy seed caking (a significant local agricultural product) into their feed, directly contributes to these distinctive flavour and aroma compounds. This specific nutritional input, unique to the Afyonkarahisar region, creates a sensory profile that is a hallmark of ‘Afyon Kaymağı’.

Specificity of geographical area

Afyonkarahisar province is a prosperous province in terms of plant diversity. It is known that around 2 000 taxa are distributed within the provincial borders. In Afyonkarahisar, the plant families Asteraceae, Fabaceae, Lamiaceae, Caryophyllaceae Verbascum, and Astragalus species grow most. Additionally, Afyonkarahisar is the province where poppy seeds are produced the most in Türkiye, as 31,3 % of the area is allocated for production and 34,9 % of the production is realized. The pulp remaining after the processing of poppy seeds is used to feed meat or milk animals in the region, especially Anatolian buffalos.
Afyonkarahisar is suitable for Anatolian buffalo breeding cultivation due to its geography and climate. The area reflects the transitional features between Mediterranean and continental climates. Anatolian buffalos are very sensitive to high and low temperatures. During summer, the temperature rises to 30 °C, urging Anatolian buffalos to cool. Many streams and lakes in the region are suitable for this purpose. The winter in Afyonkarahisar is not severe. The lowest temperature is – 3,5 °C, but the lowest annual temperature is around 5,1 °C, the threshold temperature beyond which Anatolian buffalos start feeling cold.

Human factors

Almost all the buffalo milk produced in the region is used to produce ‘Afyon Kaymağı’, a meticulous process requiring mastery. There are some production steps where mastery is needed as follows:
Raising Anatolian buffalos with traditional techniques.
Heating milk more than 6 hours without boiling or burning the milk at the bottom of tray, which spoil the flavour. Prolonged heating time causes the formation of sulfurous compounds and contribute to cooked-milk flavour, and to some extent, thermal degradation products of lactose occur and causes a sweet note.
Handling the newly formed curd gently wihtout breaking it, which is very fragile, as they pour the evening milk under the freshly formed curd.
Removing the final product from the tray without breaking it.

Causal links

Afyonkarahisar, with its transitional climate between Mediterranean and continental climates, rivers and lakes allows the breeding of Anatolian buffalos and milk production for centuries. The designated area has natural pastures rich in local aromatic plant populations that are used in most of the year by the livestock breeders. Traditional production techniques, especially long heating time results in distinctive flavour and texture of ‘Afyon Kaymağı’.

Reference to publication of the specification

The Official Geographical Indication and Traditional Product Name Bulletin of the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office dated 1 October 2020 and numbered 86


(1)  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, 23.4.2024, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1143/oj).


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/6665/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)