Geographical indicators: What’s in a name?
In recent years, we’ve seen the words ‘geographic indicators’ popping up in local legislation. What do they mean, and what are the implications for the food industry?
What are Geographic Indicators (GI)?
Many countries have their own GI systems; however, the WTO TRIPS (Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) Agreement established the international protection of GIs. It defined a GI as an indicator that identifies a particular product as originating from a particular region or locality, where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of the product is essentially attributable to its geographical origin. Examples of such indications are Champagne, Parma ham, Darjeeling tea, Parmesan cheese and Kalamata olives. Most jurisdictions internationally require the registration of GIs. Where a product has a listed GI, the specific name may not be used on products that are not from this area.
What is the situation in South Africa?
South African examples of GIs protected through international protocols include ‘Honeybush’ tea (Eastern Cape and Western Cape), ‘Rooibos’ tea (Cederberg area), ‘Karoo’ lamb (Karoo region), and various wines.
South Africa did not have a registration process in place for GIs until March 2019, when the Regulations Relating to the Protection of Geographical Indications Used on Agricultural Products Intended for Sale in the Republic of South Africa (R. 447/2019) were published under the Agricultural Products Standards Act. The regulations set out the requirements for registration and also provide an opposition procedure, which applies to both foreign and local indicators of geographical origin. No indicators have yet been entered into the South African register; however, an application for the registration of Karoo Lamb has been published for opposition purposes.
How does the food industry benefit from GIs?
As a GI is associated with the use of traditional methods, a product possessing certain qualities, or simply a product having a good reputation because of its geographical origin, such a product may be associated with enhanced quality and exclusivity, differentiating it from similar foods in the marketplace. GIs can be commercially valuable; higher prices may be obtained, and such products are then protected from the deceptive labels of similar products and unfair competition. Also, they may be eligible for relief from certain regulations, e.g. GI processed meat products are exempt from our regulations with regard to composition (R. 1283) and sodium-reduction requirements (R. 214).
There is no doubt that our local register could be filled with many unique products – watch this space
For assistance with selecting an appropriate product name according to South African legislation – based on geographical origin, DALLRD requirements, or just plain old R. 146 – contact us.