‘Designating’ the future of geographical indications

Designating' the future of geographical indicationsAs known, a comprehensive reform of geographical indications (GIs) in the EU has just been passed, strengthening and unifying its previous quality schemes for wine, spirits and agricultural products and foodstuff, on one side, and introducing a new parallel scheme for craft and industrial products, on the other side. 1 The reform has attracted considerable attention, also for its declared correlation with the broader European strategy towards sustainability. 2 While the attention is concentrated, of course, on the several new norms and their implementation in practice, 3 every reform is always a milestone for any system.This represents a valuable opportunity to stop and look back at the evolutionary path of GIs and, paradoxically, to start reflecting on their future. 4 From this point of view, the trend of the EU sui generis GI regime to focus more and more on the form of Protected Geographical Indication (PGI)-with respect to Protected Designation of Origin (PDO)-seems significantly confirmed. 5 Notably, the new unified regime for agri-food and wine products has incorporated the previous one for spirits which, as known, provides for just one single form of GI, substantially coinciding with PGI, and likewise, the new parallel scheme for craft and industrial products provides for only a single form of GI, again modelled on PGI. 6 1 Reg EU 2024/1143 on geographical indications for wine, spirit drinks and agricultural products, as well as traditional speciality guaranteed and optional quality terms for agricultural products, and Reg EU 2023/2411 on the protection of geographical indications for craft and industrial products. 2See A Zappalaglio, 'The Law of Geographical Indications at the Centre of the European Green Deal' (2023) 18 JIPLP 557 and more broadly F Guerrieri, 'The Farm to Fork Strategy as an External Driver for Change: Possible Impacts on Nested GI rule systems' (2021) 16 JIPLP 331. 3 Like the new rules about agri-food-wine GIs as ingredients for processed products under art 27 reg EU 2024/1143, which has been approved with relevant differences with respect to the original proposal, indeed maintained under art 41 reg EU 2023/2411 for craft and industrial GIs, as critically analysed in B Calabrese, 'Geographical Indications used as Ingredients or Components: a Proposed Reform in "sharp" Contrast with the Circular Economy (to say the least)' (2023) 18 JIPLP 339. 4 For such an approach, see D Gangjee, 'GIs Beyond Wine: Time To Rethink the Link?'