Many people know that Champagne comes from the region of Champagne, in France.
But Champagne isn't the only drink or food that has a protected geographical origin.
In fact, there are many more.
So, which foods are protected, and how does it all work?
A geographical indication is a certification that identifies a product as coming from a
specific area.
Champagne is a great example of a product with a geographical indication, because it
is widely known, and also widely enforced around the world.
The rules are pretty simple - in many countries around the world, if your sparkling wine does
not come from the region of Champagne in France, it cannot be labelled and sold as champagne.
But things get more complex once we get to Champagne - the region, not the wine.
See, to call champagne champagne, the drink doesn’t just have to come from this region,
but also has to follow a very strict set of rules regarding the production of the wine.
These rules include things like which varieties of grapes can be used to make the wine, and
how the grapevines are pruned, how many grapes can be grown per hectare, how much juice can
be pressed from those grapes, and even how long the drink must be left in the bottle.
If a wine can follow the set of rules, plus come from the appropriate region, it can be
certified with a geographical indication label.
For champagne that is this label, but the EU in particular has other labels as well.
Each of these labels has its own rules that need to be followed depending on the product
being produced, but geography is of key importance to all of them.
To earn a geographical indication badge, the product needs to be made in a specific location.
Proponents of these schemes argue that there is something inherent about the geography
of the region in which these food products are made, that give them an irreplicable quality.
Often this is something about climactic conditions and soil types, which contribute to a certain
quality of vegetation and microbiota, which is used to make the product itself, or is
passed on to livestock which share that certain geographical quality, and from which the final
product is manufactured.
For example -
Queso Manchego - Made with the milk of Manchega sheep from the dry region of La Mancha, Spain.
The Manchega sheep have reportedly adapted to the very dry conditions of the region,
which is a high plain with lime-clay soils and extremes of temperature.
It’s the milk of these particular sheep that give Queso Manchego its flavour.
The geography affects which kind of sheep thrive in the area, and the cheese is made
specifically from the milk of these sheep.
Gruyère - Made with the milk from cows which graze on grass that grows in the chalky soils
of the mountainous region of eastern France and western Switzerland.
The maturing cheeses are then smeared with local microflora, salt and water, to create
the rind and giving it the true flavour of the region.
Tasty.
Feta - Made with sheep’s milk (and sometimes also goat’s milk) in Greece, but more specifically
made here, here, here, here, here, here or here.
The European Commission states that Greece’s inhospitable geography, which is hot, dry
and mountainous lead to the farming of sheep and goats, over cattle (hence feta being made
from sheep’s milk).
The sheep graze on the local flora, giving feta its flavour.
Gorgonzola - which is made in several provinces of the north of Italy.
According to the official gorgonzola website, the north of Italy was a prime cheese making
region in years past due to a particular geographic feature - natural caves in which the cheese
was matured.
Although of course these days cheeses are mainly matured indoors.
And (this is the last example) Stilton - which is made from milk mostly from cows that are
grazed in Leicestershire, Derbyshire or Nottinghamshire, counties which have a mild climate and rich
soils which grow ideal grass that reportedly helps the cows to produce a rich milk for
cheese making.
Although of course now that the UK is no longer in the EU, we’ll have to see how that plays
out with their protected geographical origins.
The EU has a long list of other food products that have protected geographical origins,
like wine, spirits, cheeses, cured meats, oils, confectionaries, et cetera.
All of these geographically protected foods have incredibly specific and stringent rules
regarding their production, including local knowledge, which is a huge part of these designations
as well.
But here I’ve just highlighted the geographical rules.
So, back to champagne just for a moment - it’s easy enough for France to control these rules
inside its own country, but how are these rules enacted around the world?
The French government has no jurisdiction in Australia for example, so what’s to stop
me selling a drink called champagne here?
The answer, is international agreements - and I promise that is not as boring as it sounds.
But why would any country agree to impose overseas restrictions on products in its own
country?
Well, I’ve highlighted what proponents of these schemes might argue - that the products
are irreplicable thanks to local geography and knowledge, but there are other benefits
too - there is a quality guarantee, consumers know exactly what they’re getting, as well
as the restrictions helping local economies that might be heavily reliant on an industry
that has been cultivated over centuries.
But restrictions like these are not universally popular.
Detractors argue that these rules unfairly restrict people from cultural diasporas from
continuing traditions.
For example a Greek family that emigrated from Europe could run into trouble if they
produced and sold a local feta, if their country had an agreement with the EU to protect feta
as only coming from Greece.
Others argue that some names of these foodstuffs may have transcended their original geographical
indications, and aren’t necessarily strongly associated with a particular region any more
in the mind of the consumer.
In other words, they have become generic names.
For example, if you were in Australia would you expect a Prosecco to be made in Italy?
Or has that name transcended the region from which it came, and become more of a generic
name?
What about Danish feta?
Would you assume that was made in Denmark?
Or being a feta, Greece?
Or could it be made Danish-style locally.
There are no right answers here, and different consumers will have their own expectations
that will vary by product.
Even the World Trade Organisation that is generally in favour of geographical indications
recognises that generic names should be excepted from protections.
But does encourage countries to work it out between each other with bilateral agreements.
The reason I mention free trade agreements is because Australia and the EU are currently
negotiating one.
And whether you think this is a good idea, or not, and regardless of whether the free
trade terms have actually been agreed to yet - food packaging in Australia is already changing,
and feta is a really interesting example.
Head down to your local Australian supermarket and take a look at the feta.
We’ve got Greek feta, made in Greece, nothing curious about that, but if we look at the
Australian fetta, that is, the feta-style cheese that is made in Australia, it’s spelt
differently.
Fetta with a double-T. Here it is again, and again, and again.
The fetta from Australia is often spelled differently than the traditional feta from
Greece.
Some supermarkets have even started to sell Danish white cheese next to the feta and the
fetta - surely that name could be workshopped some more.
Now, there is a huge difference between Australian supermarket fetta and Greek feta - one often
being made from cow’s milk and the other from sheep’s milk, so it’s definitely
not unreasonable to differentiate the two.
But surely changing the name slightly will only make things confusing if it starts happening
on all the other products that the EU protects as well.
Would you like the Stilton or the Australian-style Stiltoon?
The Gruyère or the Australian-style Gru-yèah?
European countries, like all countries, have local specialties, that for a range of reasons,
including geography, can’t necessarily be mimicked perfectly overseas.
So should they be able to protect these names in other countries, where they have often
been adopted as a generic name?
Should local producers find unique, local names to reflect their products’ origins?
Or should local producers still be able to use traditional names?
There may not be a right answer, but I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts in
the comments.
Thanks for indulging me in this video about food geography, and in case anyone’s interested
I’ll leave a link to Gru-yèah T-shirts below.
I’ll see you next time.