Brussels, 28th May 2009. Having read today’s communication on the quality policy, producers of wines with an appellation of origin from France, Italy, Spain and Portugal regret that the European Commission did not make concrete proposals that would have helped to consolidate the geographical indications (GIs) system in the EU.
Brussels, 28th May 2009. Having read today’s communication on the quality policy, producers of wines with an appellation of origin from France, Italy, Spain and Portugal1 regret that the European Commission did not make concrete proposals that would have helped to consolidate the geographical indications (GIs) system in the EU.
Wines with an appellation of origin and numerous stakeholders of the GI sector had explained their expectations in the context of the consultation launched by the European Commission through a Green Paper at the end of 2008. In its communication, the Commission takes note of most of these demands but fails to come up with concrete proposals on some key aspects for the future of GI wines in the EU.
Producers of wines with an appellation of origin are disappointed in particular with the absence of proposal on the role that the organizations in charge of appellations of origin and geographical indications could play in the management of production.
GIs need to be able to manage their growth in order to maintain their reputation and contribute to the economic and social dynamism of many European regions. Without this, the whole sector will be at the mercy of the industrial logic that favours quantity over quality. We are waiting for concrete legislative proposals from the Commission on this crucial issue
said M.Riccardo Ricci Curbastro, President of FEDERDOC.
The four organizations are also concerned with the Commission’s proposals on the simplification and harmonization of the GI system.
The Commission would like to merge the Protected Denomination of Origin (PDO) and Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) concepts that represent very different realities. This is inconceivable as it would put into jeopardy more than 200 years of history. We need to be able to maintain a distinction between “terroirs wines” with strict production requirements (PDO) and “wines from territories” (PGI), as pleasant, but that have more flexible production requirements
stated M. Pierre Aguilas, Président of CNAOC.
The Commission proposes to create a single legal framework for all GIs. However, the EU regulation on wines with PDO and PGI include many specific provisions in particular with regard to the definitions and the origin of the raw materials. Should there be a merge of the existing legal instruments, it would be absolutely fundamental to preserve the specificities of our sector
underlined M. Fernando Prieto Ruiz, President of CECRV.
With regard to the Commission’s proposals on the international protection of GIs, the four organizations fully share the objectives set out by the Commission. However, they would have like the Commission to be more specific on the means that could be provided to achieve concrete results on this topic.
Despite all the Commission’s efforts in the context of the WTO and bilateral agreements’ negotiations, we have not been able to secure all the protection that we need to protect our famous names at the international level. We want to work closely with the European Commission in order to define an ambitious strategy that will mobilize important and coherent means to secure the protection of our geographical indications and appellations of origin
stressed Luciano Vilhena Pereira, President of IVDP.
Background
On 15 October 2008, the European Commission published a Green Paper on the Quality of Agriculture Production and launched a public consultation that lasted 3 months. More than 500 contributions were sent to the Commission. An overview of the answers was published in March 2009. The communication published today is the latest step in this context. For more information, see: read more
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- Brussels: David THUAL (+32.497.42.07.69)