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Japher
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Ook! Ook! Ack! Ack! Ack!
Jun 2002
time: 05:30
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EU's Beef
BRUSSELS, Belgium - The European Union issued a list Thursday of 41 wines, cheeses and other products it wants protected by a global trade pact, accusing other countries of abusing the names of its delicacies.
Under the proposal -- which is resisted by the United States, Canada and others -- products labeled as Champagne, Parma ham, Roquefort cheese or any of the other names on the list will have to come from their traditional European regions.
``Abuses in other countries undermine the reputation of EU products and create confusion for consumers,'' the EU's trade commissioner, Pascal Lamy, said. ``We want this to cease for the most usurped products.''
In world trade talks in Cancun, Mexico, next month, the EU wants to create a global register of such geographically defined products that would ban producers from outside the traditional region for using such names.
Its list includes Beaujolais, Chianti, Madeira and other wines; feta, Gorgonzola, Roquefort and other cheeses; and Parma ham and mortadella sausages. In some countries, these names are claimed to be generic or have been registered as trademarks by local producers.
``This is a short list of 41 products whose names are being abused and parroted'' by non-EU producers, said EU spokesman Gregor Kreuzhuber.
He added that the EU planned to seek protection at a later stage for 600 more ``regional quality products.'' On top of that, it awaits submissions of products peculiar to Cyprus, Malta and eight East European nations that will join the EU in May.
The EU is not alone. India is keen to protect Darjeeling tea, Sri Lanka its Ceylon tea, Guatemala its Antigua coffee and Switzerland its Etivaz cheese.
The EU has run into opposition from the United States and some Latin American nations that argue that in many cases, products such as sherry or Parmesan cheese were introduced by European immigrants and have been made in their new countries for generations.
``This is not about protectionism. It is about fairness,'' EU Agriculture Commissioner Franz Fischler said in a statement. ``It is simply not acceptable that the EU cannot sell its genuine Italian Parma ham in Canada because the trademark `Parma ham' is reserved for a ham produced in Canada.''
He said geographical indicators are a quality guarantee and avoid confusion among consumers.
In recent bilateral trade agreements, the EU has stood firm in protecting its labels, forcing South Africa to phase out its use of the port and sherry labels, and demanding Chilean wine makers stop using the Champagne or Burgundy brands.
Under a liquor trade agreement in the early 1990s, the United States agreed not to use labels such as Scotch whiskey or Cognac, while the EU said bourbon or Tennessee whiskey should remain exclusive American products.
However, the issue of geographic labeling is touchy, even within the EU.
Denmark has been fighting a seven-year legal battle over Greece's claims to exclusive rights over the name ``feta'' for its salty white cheese.
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I think the EU is taking things too far, or at least not picking their battles well... What do you think?
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Asmodean
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Aarhus, Denmark
Aug 1999
time: 06:30
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In the case of Champagne: No other wine in Europe may call itself Champagne. Why should overseas ones be allowed to.
In the case of Parma Ham. No other ham in Europe may call itself Parma Ham. Why etc.
These products are for the most part products of a very high quality. A quality that is known worldwide. It is confusing for the average consumer, that these names "brandnames" as they are, can be used indiscriminately be whatever producer registeres the trademark first, when the names have been used for decades, even centuries in Europe.
I'm sorry, but it really makes Americans look stupid, that they can not see why Europe cares about this.
By the way: Disney has just won a lawsuit against the descendants of a Danish children's book author. App. 40 years ago, this guy, Ole Lund Kirkegaard, wrote a novel called "Gummi Tarzan". In translation, this means "Rubber Tarzan". Since then this book has become part of Danish cultural heritage. It's a book that all danes know, and everybody have read it as a child. Now Disney owns the name Tarzan, and have just won a lawsuit against the family of Mr. Kirkegaard. Basically the name of the book has to change, or else...
So you see...you guys can do it to. In my book this is anexample of just the opposite. Now who's looking stupid?
Asmodean
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Comrade Tassadar
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Why don't the Danish courts tell Disney where to go and how to get there?
Really, things like this are silly.
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Japher
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Ook! Ook! Ack! Ack! Ack!
Jun 2002
time: 05:30
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Asmoden: I agree completely with you address...
The point I started making, and then got side tracked, is that America is getting picked on and blamed for everyone's problems... IMO The EU wants us to stop using these names not because it is "wrong" but because it hurts their pocket book... What the EU should do is market their products better (which is Americas Forte, and the real complaint), educate the public that they are so afraid are being "tricked" by the manufacturers, and actually fix the problem themselves; not ask the US to do it for them... make sense?
Also,
quote:
You have no real sense of the dedication and emotion that goes into making a product that has been made for centuries at the exact same spot where you are making it, by people exactly like you (in some cases even your own family). So please understand European manufacturers if they feel offended that people 4000 miles away claim to be making the same product.
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They don't claim that is that product. Besides, many of the people who started making "similar" products here were from there and brought with them the knowledge and desire to have a little bit of home with them.
And please don't tell us Americans what we do and don't have a "real sense" of or "understand" anymore, it's a stupid argument that holds no weight and I am tired of hearing Old Europe keep telling us this... We are like an ignorant teenager, but did you ever listen? Doubt it, and the more that you continue to say stuff like that the more it hurts...
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30-08-2003 00:57
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