Protected designation of origin
Protected designation of origin (
PDO),
protected geographical indication (
PGI) and
Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (
TSG) are
geographical indications defined in
European Union Law to protect regional foods.The purpose of the law is to ensure that only products genuinely originating in that region are allowed in commerce as such. The legislation came into force in 1992.
These laws protects the names of
wines,
cheeses,
hams,
sausages,
olives,
beers, and even regional
breads,
fruits, and
vegetables. As such, foods such as
Gorgonzola,
Parmigiano Reggiano, and
Champagne can only be labelled as such if they come from the designated region. To qualify as
Roquefort, for example, cheese must be made from milk of a certain breed of
sheep, and matured in the natural caves near the town of Roquefort in the
Aveyron region of France where it is "infected" with the spores of a
fungus (
Penicillium roqueforti) that grows in these caves.
This system is similar to the
French Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (AOC) system, the
Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC) used in
Italy, and the
Denominación de Origen system used in
Spain.
Article 13 of this legislation states that registered designations are protected against:
...any usurpation or imitation, even if the true origin of the product is indicated or if the appellation is used in translated form or accompanied by terms such as "kind", "type"...
The geographical limitations can be quite strict. "
Newcastle Brown Ale" is restricted to being brewed in the city of
Newcastle upon Tyne in England. However, having obtained this protection for their product, the brewery decided in 2004 that it would move across the river Tyne to
Gateshead. As Gateshead is a separate city, it does not fall within the required geographical restriction so the brewery is now applying to the
European Union authorities to have the geographical restriction revoked–if it is not, the brewery will either have to stay put, or stop calling its beer "Newcastle" brown ale.
This legislation expanded upon the 1951 Stresa Convention, which was the first international agreement on cheese names. Seven countries participated:
Austria,
Denmark, France, Italy,
Norway,
Sweden,
Switzerland.
There is no protection for these names on products both made and sold outside the EU.
United States
In the United States, for example, one can buy American
champagne,
Feta,
Gruyère and
Camembert. Products which are either made or sold in the EU, such as Australian
Shiraz, which is the same grape as
Syrah are subject to regulation. For practicality reasons some products which were traditionally made in a specific region are not subject to the PDO, often due to the quantities in which they are consumed, for example the consumption of Cheddar in the UK alone is many times the amount Cheddar itself could feasibly produce.
While the United States usually opposes protection of geographical designations of origin (since many of these which are protected elsewhere are commonly-used generic terms in the United States, such as
parmesan cheese), there are some groups who would like to see some degree of protection for their regional designation. For example,
Vidalia onions must be produced within a certain region around
Vidalia, Georgia as defined by the Georgia Department of
Agriculture, and 100%
Florida orange juice is certified as being such by that
state's Department of
Citrus. Some of these marks are protected in the United States under
certification mark law, such as the
Idaho Potato Commission's IDAHO and GROWN IN IDAHO registered marks for
potatoes. On the other hand, there are also cases where a geographical name has been trademarked for a particular product that might not even be manufactured there, such as
Philadelphia cream cheese. However, there is little impetus to extend further recognitions at the federal level.
Australia
Following an agreement during the 1990s by the
Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation, and the Australian and EU governments, the others' GIs and the nations' traditional terms of winemaking were meant to have been protected by 1997. However, this has been proceeding slowly and while some GIs have been protected in Australia, others are still available for use (primarily for products that have always been called that). It seems unlikely it will have any effect on colloquial speech in the short term.
Canada
In
Canada, a
2003 agreement made with the EU provides for protection of the names of wine and spirits. The new classification of names will be done in phases. By the end of 2013, all of the affected names will be protected, including Chablis, Champagne, Port, and Sherry.
Ideally, protected designation of origin is both a
consumer protection measure and a way of protecting producers of a region's traditional and/or characteristic foods. In reality, such designations can often become a subject for divisive
politics.
A complete list of agricultural products with a
European Union Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), Protected Geographical Indication (PGI), or Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (TSG), listed alphabetically by nation, is at the
Europa Agriculture site.
See also: :Category:Protected designation of origin.
*
Appellation*
European Union Common Agricultural Policy*
Genericized trademark*
EU Food Quality website with access to PDO/PGI/TSG listings *
Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation*"
Food firm cheesed off over ruling" at
BBC News,
25 October 2005
