ABSTRACT
A wide number of agro-food products are known for where they come from and the ways in which they are grown or produced. Names such as Basmati, Roquefort and Camembert speak both to the unique agroecological and cultural circumstances that shape the qualities of particular products, and to a sense of place and authenticity that goes beyond their immediate sensory characteristics. Geographical Indications (GIs) provide a legal framework to protect and promote such products. The World Trade Organization’s Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement, adopted in 1994, defines GIs very broadly as:
indications which identify a good as originating in the territory of a Member, or a region or locality in that territory, where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of the good is essentially attributable to its geographical origin.
This definition has become the international reference point for discussion of GIs even though a number of national and international legal definitions pre-existed TRIPS and the implementation of GI protection worldwide remains characterized by considerable diversity. The number of recognized GIs is growing quite quickly around the world. For example, there are currently more than 800 registered agri-food GIs in the EU (excluding wines and spirits, of which there are more than 4000). One hundred and seventeen GIs were registered in India between 2003 and 2009, of which 33 were for agri-food products.