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WTO Dispute Panel to Review EU's Geographic Indications Rules Earlier this month, the World Trade Organization (WTO) rekindled the global debate over geographic indications (GI) for food names by establishing a WTO dispute settlement panel to examine the European Union's (EU) internal GI protections. As reported previously in News Update, the United States and Australia requested this panel in August, claiming that the EU's internal GI system does not adequately protect the trademarks of non-European products.The EU has granted internal GI protections to about 600 food names based on a regional link, such as parmesan and feta cheeses. Under the EU's rules, a non-EU nation can only receive full GI protection for its imports into the European market by fully guaranteeing GI protection in its domestic market for these 600 EU products. For instance, the United States would have to recognize all 600 GI foods designated by the EU to receive the same protection for a handful of trademarked U.S. products, such as Idaho potatoes and Florida oranges. In addition to the uneven exchange of benefits, the United States and Australia feel that many of the 600 food names have passed into generic use without any distinguishing link to their original geographic origin — a position that IDFA and many others in the U.S. food industry strongly support. If the EU would be successful in having its GI system officially recognized, some cheeses made by U.S. processors would have to be renamed, including: asiago, gorgonzola, and neufchatel. This could eventually lead to attempts by other European nations to claim protection for additional cheese names based on regional background, including: cheddar (English); edam and gouda (Dutch); feta (Greek); gruyere, swiss and emmental (Swiss); muenster (German); and mozzarella and parmesan (Italian). The WTO is expected to appoint the members of the three-person dispute panel in early November. The panel will then have six months to study the case before announcing its findings. The panel announcement comes after weeks of public discord on GI protections between U.S. and EU officials prior to September's WTO Ministerial in Cancun, Mexico. In August, the EU emphasized its insistence on linking further reform of global agriculture trading rules in the WTO Doha round with expanded GI protections under WTO rules. (Click here to read an August News Update article on this topic.) While the GI disagreement was not a major factor in the eventual collapse of the WTO Ministerial, it is clear that it will continue to be a thorny issue as the Doha round moves forward. For additional background information on this subject, click here.
Posted October 20, 2003
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