The Consortium - News & Events - The Parma Ham Consortium

09.02.2005

Parma, 9 February 2005 - A positive meeting between the Prosciutto di Parma Consortium, the Parmigiano-Reggiano Consortium and representatives from the US government to discuss the protection and guaranteeing of PDO products at an international level and during WTO negotiations.

The aim of the meeting was to raise awareness within the WTO section that is still skeptical about the advantages that additional protection would bring to the existing geographical indications at an international level

Those who participated at the meeting were:

- Deborah Lashley-Johnson, Attorney Advisor U.S. Patent & Trademark Office
- Perky Ramroth, Industry Analyst, Alcohol and Tobacco Trade Bureau (TTB Office)
- Geoffrey Wiggin, Ministro-Consigliere per l'Agricoltura, Ambasciata USA di Roma
- Kirk Ressler, Console USA, Consolato di Milano
- Angelica Guerrieri, Assistente Sezione Economica, Consolato USA di Milano

The American government states that current trademark laws are more than sufficient to protect Geographical Indications at an international level, refusing European requests to set up a specific protection system for them.

During the meeting, the Consortiums highlighted the current system's deficiencies and the lack of any real protection for their products at an international level using specific and concrete examples. For this reason, the Consortiums' multilateral level proposal is the setting up of an independent protection system observing trademark laws, by extending the protection guarantees for wine and alcohol by the TRIPs Agreements to other designation of origins.

"Market protection in US markets- said Leo Bertozzi, director of the Parmigiano-Reggiano Consortium- is applied by the trademark registration system, but for PDO products this system has weaknesses. In reality registration, which occurs in US offices, puts the onus of checking onto the person depositing the brand. As a result, public body control mechanisms are lacking. In addition, in Parmigiano-Reggiano's case, we have registered the denomination, but we have to protect the use of both words ("Parmigiano" and "Reggiano") via individual registrations. Objectively speaking this is absurd and a waste of both resources and energy. Furthermore, US business enterprises insist that two different products are being dealt with and this forces us to confront actions case by case. The meeting was very useful because the American delegations were able to understand how our production system worked thanks to a cheese factory visit; i.e. based on a widespread network of dairies located in the area. In addition, we were able to make them understand that we don't want to violate the trademark system, although the US needs to recognize there is need for a specific PDO protection system. Therefore a solution has to be reached that is fair for both parties, protection for producers and for consumers".

"Faced with the difficulties and the apparently irreconcilable positions that emerged from the WTO negotiations, we believed that it was indispensable to identify a non-institutional framework within which frank and transparent discussions could be developed on the controversial subject of the international protection of PDO products - confirmed Stefano Fanti, director of the Prosciutto di Parma Consortium. It seemed to be the best way to be able to share - aside from "ideological" positions - the actual problems that Prosciutto di Parma and other PDOs are coping with in non-European markets, but also in order to understand other parties' needs, evaluating and examining together possible solutions. With out doubt, I believe that this meeting has had a positive outcome and that all parties involved have come out of the encounter with an increased willingness to work together to identify shared objectives that will allow the difficulties that operators in the sector have, to be overcome" said Stefano Fanti, director of the Prosciutto di Parma Consortium".

For further information:

Consorzio del Prosciutto di Parma
Via Marco dell'Arpa, 8/b - 43100 Parma
Press Office
Tel. 0521.243987
Fax 0521.243983

Consorzio del Formaggio Parmigiano-Reggiano
Via J.F. Kennedy, 18 - 42100 Reggio Emilia
Press Office
Tel. 0522.700230
Fax 0522.700240

Positive outcome to Parma Consortiums discussions with US about PDO protection

09.02.2005