How different countries coordinate and
control the GIs (process,
products etc.)?
Are there any economical benefits and
what is the meaning of
the system for the rural areas?
Ana Soeiro
Association QUALIFICA General Secretary
PORTUGAL
WWW.QUALIFICA.PT
BACKGROUND
All over the world farmers and small,
medium and big industries are producing
oranges, potatoes, barley, rice, olive oils, pork
meat, hams, cheeses, butter, honey, breads,
pastry, pasta, roses, bears, ciders, salmon,
vinegars, wool, essential oils, tea, coffee, silk,
cotton, pepper, prawns, wine, spirits, cakes....
All over the world….those products are just
called like….
Oranges, potatoes, rice, olive oil, pork
meat, ham, cheese, butter, honey, bread,
pastry, pasta, roses, bear, cider, salmon,
vinegar, wool, essential oils, tea, coffee,
silk, cotton, pepper, prawns, wine, spirit.
cake....
Common and descriptive names
PART I [email protected]
2
BACKGROUND
But sometimes….. products are known not
only by the
Common and descriptive name
But also by a GEOGRAPHICAL NAME
Geographical name of
the region where it is
“farmed”
usually
PART I [email protected]
Geographical name of the
region where it is
“produced”
3
In that “few” cases….
Oranges became to be called …
Olive oil became to be called..
Ham became to be called..
Cheese became to be called..
ALGARVE oranges
MOURA olive oil
BARRANCOS ham
NISA cheese
WHY?
PART I [email protected]
4
Because consumers
Buy
/
Taste
/
Find differences
Ask about the geographical origin
And begin to use the geographical name in order to choose and
to differentiate the product
PART I [email protected]
5
KEY CONCEPTS
1- The product is in the market
2 – A geographical name is used to assign the product
3 – there is a link between the product and the
geographic region whose name is used
The geographical name
became a
GEOGRAPHICAL
INDICATION
PART I [email protected]
GI
6
BUT…. Human nature exists….
If the product is in
the market using
the GI
Consumers will be
attracted….
GI
PART I [email protected]
7
Everybody understands that
• If a GI is not registered and
protected
• It will be misused and
abused
• And producers and
consumers will be deceived
and smashed
PART I [email protected]
8
So, the European choice was to
create:
•
•
•
An appropriate legal system to protect
geographical names : GI’s
A voluntary system (on producers’ initiative)
A protection by the way of registration:
Regulation 510/2006 (ex 2081/92), on the
protection of geographical indications and
designations of origin for agricultural products
and foodstuffs
PART I [email protected]
9
Objectives of the GI’s
protection
• To protect product names from misuse and
imitation
• To help consumers, by giving them
information concerning the specific
character and the origin of the products
• To
encourage
diverse
agricultural
production and rural sustainability
PART I [email protected]
10
Interest of the geographical indications
for the producers
Names are protected against infringements or unfair
competition
The added value stays in the region
GI improve good practices as well as demands better
presentation, better labelling, better marketing and
better advertising
Improves sales and exports
30/08/2012
[email protected]
11
Interest of geographical indications as a tool for
rural development
To encourage diverse
agricultural
production
To maintain people in
agricultural areas
To improve
employment and
vitality of rural areas
Sustainability
30/08/2012
[email protected]
12
Interest of the geographical
indications for the consumers
• GI covered products are original,
authentic and with specific quality
GI gives information on the origin
and the quality of the product –
safety and traceability
GI products are at the same time
pleasure and culture. Sometimes
they are also luxury products used in
very important occasions
30/08/2012
[email protected]
13
Geographical indications are intended to highlight special
qualities of the products through indication of their
geographical origin
Geographical indications preserve cultural traditions and are
usually associated with protection of traditional knowledge
and community rights
Products covered by Geographical indications usually
obtain market recognition and a premium price
Geographical indications are an
intellectual property right and its
legal protection is required.
Some figures on the GI's protected in
the EU *
As of today, 1056 agricultural and foodstuffs names
(wines and spirits excluded) are registered as PDO or
PGI in the EU register. 24 EU Member States have
names registered (only Malta, Estonia and Latvia do not
have registered names) and 3 third countries (China,
Columbia and India).
As regards wines and spirits, 1561 wine PDO/PGI, 2
third countries wine GI and 325 spirit GI are protected
in the EU.
* Ref Ares(2012)69394 06/06/2012
And many more are waiting....
Some figures on the GI's protected in the EU
In 2007, the 820 PDO and PGI agricultural products listed in the European Register for
agricultural products and foodstuffs (excluding wines and spirits but including beer)
had an estimated wholesale value of € 14.2 billion.
The turnover of these PDO and PGI products rose steadily between 2005 and 2007.
In addition, it was estimated that 30% of the production of PDO and PGI was exported
outside the European Union, to the tune of € 700 millions.
There was a rise in PDO and PGI exports between 2005 and 2007, both in volume (+
9%) and value (+ 17%).
Cheese accounted for more than a third of total PDO/PGI turnover, beer for a fourth
and meat products for 16%.
Other data sources report an estimated € 13 billion farm gate value for wines and €
30 billion consumer price value for spirits. Exports of wines stood at € 5,9 billion
and of spirits at € 5,7 billion. The EU trade in processed agricultural products is for
25 -30 % covered by GIs, 80 % of total wine exports are GIs and almost all spirits
exports are GIs.
Besides this economical importance, it should be recalled
that GI's carry a strong political weight in international
negotiations, in particular for certain Member States who
see it as a crucial offensive interest. For this reason, today, it
would not be conceivable to negotiate a Free Trade
Agreement (FTA) without an appropriate chapter on GIs.
In order to get protection
an application must be addressed to national
authorities and later to the Commission
• Protection
against
abuses, unlawful acts,
frauds and any practice
liable to mislead the
consumer as to the true
origin of the product
• Specification
Product name, product
and raw materials
description, method of
production description,
geographical area,
traceability, link,
labelling,......
...and verification of compliance
systhem
the name and address
of the authorities or
bodies verifying
compliance with the
provisions of the
specification…
…and their specific tasks
In EU we have an Official Food
and Feed Control system (OFFC),
whose central goals are
• Protection of human health
• Protection of consumers' interests
• Effective functioning of the internal
market
taking into account diversity, including traditional products as PDOs,
PGIs and TSGs
Page 21
Under that OFFC Member States shall:
• enforce food law, monitor and verify that the
relevant requirements of food law are
fulfilled
• maintain a system of official controls
covering all stages of production, processing
and distribution
• lay down the rules on measures and
penalties that are effective, proportionate
and dissuasive
including PDOs, PGIs and TSGs
Page 22
• Community feed and food law is based on the
principle that feed and food business
operators at all stages of production,
processing and distribution within the
businesses under their control are responsible
for ensuring that feed and food satisfy the
requirements of feed and food law which are
relevant to their activities.
Don’t forget that under PDO/PGI or TSG schemes producers ask
to be under a special and voluntary control scheme
Page 23
• The Member States should ……..monitor and
verify that the relevant requirements thereof
are fulfilled by business operators …… Official
controls should be organised for that purpose.
Page 24
• ..Reg. 834/2007 on organic farming…., Reg 509
and 510/2006 on TSGs and on PGIs and PDOs
…. contain specific measures for the
verification of compliance with the
requirements contained therein.
• The requirements of OFFC should be flexible
enough so as to take account of the specificity
of these areas.
...and the specificity in PDOs/ PGIs and TSGs comes from
specific ingredients and or geographical origin and or
method of production.... as it is described in each particular
specification book
Page 25
• The frequency of official controls should be
regular and proportionate to the risk, taking into
account the results of the checks carried out by
feed and food business operators under HACCP
based control programmes or QA programmes,
where such programmes are designed to meet
requirements of feed and food law... Ad hoc
controls should be carried out in case of suspicion
of non- compliance. Additionally ad hoc controls
could be carried out at any time….
X-check with:
Reg 510/2006 – art.11
Reg 509/2006 – art 15
Page 26
• (21) Provision should be made for delegating
competence for performing specific control
tasks from the competent authority to a
control body, and for the conditions under
which such delegation can take place.
X-check with:
Reg 510/2006 – art.11
Reg 509/2006 – art 15
Page 27
• (22) Appropriate procedures should be available for
the cooperation of the competent authorities in and
between the Member States, in particular when
official controls reveal that feed and food problems
extend to more than one Member State. In order to
facilitate such cooperation, Member States should
designate one or more liaison bodies with the role of
coordinating the transmission and reception of
requests for assistance.
Don’t forget customs! We have a lot of
bad experiences with PDO/ PGI abuses
even in EU territory
Page 28
• In establishing rules on the official controls of
feed and food from third countries, it should
be ensured that the competent authorities
and the customs services work together,
taking into account the fact that rules to that
effect already exist in Council Regulation (EEC)
No 339/93 …. on checks for conformity with
the rules on product safety in the case of
products imported from third countries.
Page 29
Don’t forget products coming from 3rd countries can
use EU specifc logos for PDOs/PGIs and TSGs and
they know the value of using logos!
Don’t forget customs!
• Community controls in the MS should allow
the Commission control services to verify
whether feed and food law and the legislation
on animal health and animal welfare are
implemented in a uniform and correct way
throughout the Community.
Page 30
• (41) Breaches of feed and food law…..may
constitute a threat to human health, animal
health, and animal welfare. Such breaches
should therefore be subject to effective,
dissuasive and proportionate measures at
national level throughout the Community.
With PDO/PGI or TSG products we must add attempt to
rural economy and development, to cultural patrimony
and heritage, to consumers expectations and to other
producers economy and reputation
Page 31
Key points
PDOs, PGIs and TSGs are “composed” by
• A product (cheese, ham, olive oil, bread….)
+
• A name (geographical/ traditional – DOs or GIs
or specific or expressing the specificity for
TSGs)
Page 32
Verification of compliance
• The product, as all products, is covered by
common OC rules and plans (namely on food
safety aspects)
• But when it is intended to use the PROTECTED
NAME, than all steps of the production chain
must be under a specific control plan, in order to
assure that COMPLIANCE WITH SPECIFICATION is
fulfilled.
• So, a specific control plan (verification of
compliance plan) is required for each product
covered by a PDO or by a PGI or by a TSG.
Page 33
Protection
• Market must be under official control in order to
verify if:
• Consumer is not mislead (Protection of
consumers' interests)
• PDOs/PGIs and TSGs are not being abused
(Effective functioning of the internal market and
protection of intellectual property)
• Producers are not victims of unfair competence
(Effective functioning of the internal market)
Page 34
Several possibilities on CA organisation
•
1 CA for all the territory of a MS and for all sectors
•
2 or more CA for the territory of a MS and for all sectors
•
2 or more CA for the territory of a MS, acting by sector (animal origin products,
plant products or food sector and feed sector or organic sector or PDOs/PGIs and
TSGs sector or ...)
In some MS, MA is responsible for controls in PDOs, PGIs and TSGs sector
•
1 CA with delegation of competences in regional authorities and or in local
authorities
•
1 CA or 2 or more CA with delegation of specific tasks related to official controls to
one or more control bodies, operating as a product certification body .
• ......other possible variations
Page 35
Specific tasks on PDOs/PGIs and TSGs
-
Establish and approval of specific verification of compliance plan, in cooperation with Producer’s Group, taking into account relevant parts of
concerned specification and risk assessment
- Establish frequency of controls taking into account relevant self controls
and controls made by producer’s group
- Establish market control plan on order to defend PDOs/PGIs and TSGs
from abuses
- Without prejudice of art. 54 (action in case of non compliance) establish
the grid of non-conformities with specification and its classification (minor,
major, critical...) and irrespective specific sanctions
Page 36
• Only the CAs of the Member State don’t need
accreditation (but they shall offer adequate
guarantees of objectivity and impartiality, and
have at their disposal the qualified staff and
resources necessary to carry out their functions.
See Reg 510, art 11 (4) and
Reg 509 art 15 (4)
• All others bodies acting on delegation from the
CA to perform specific control tasks need to be
accredited in accordance with EN 45011 or
ISO/EC Guide 65, from 1 May 2010.
Page 37
Central
CA
Regional
CA
Regional
A
CA
Local CA
Local CA
LOCAL
CA
B
Page 38
Regional
CA
• Co-operation with producers groups – they are
interested in reliability
• Deep knowledge of the entire row
• Simple and effective verification of compliance
plan bases on risk assessment and critical points
• Written procedures
• Clear delegation of competences, clear tasks and
clear reports in order to avoid “black holes” or
“over controls”
•
Page 39
Responsibilities of CAs / CB's
towards operators
• CAs and CBs are responsible to help operators to keep the
system reliable. So they must act promptly and with:
High level of expertise
Confidentiality, avoiding conflict of interests, impartiality,
effectiveness
Under control plan but trying to improve it
Helping and improving the economy and the
proficiency of the system
Page 40
Responsibilities of CAs and CBs
towards final consumer
• CAs and CBs are responsible to help operators to keep the
system reliable.
• So they must act as a third part, helping producers to confirm
the compliance with the specifications.
Page 41
Regulation (EC) No 882/2004
versus
Regulations (EC) No 510/06 and 509/06
•Regulation (EC) No 882/04
on official controls
performed to ensure the
verification of compliance
with feed and food law,
animal health and animal
welfare rules
42
•Regulation (EC) No
510/06 and 509/06
provides specific measures
for the verification of
compliance with the
requirements contained in
the specification
Products covered by a PGI/PDO or TSG
are under:
Regulation (EC) No 882/2004
..... any of the stages of production,
processing and distribution of food.
They shall include controls on food
businesses, on the use of food, on the
storage of food, on any process,
material, substance, activity or
operation including transport applied
to food
PDOs/PGIs and TSGs: all normal and
common criteria must be fulfil
•Plus Regulation (EC)
No.510/06 or 509/06
… verification of
compliance with the
specifications, before
placing the product on
the market
Depending on the product and on the Protected
Designation Scheme, verification of compliance with
specification plan can include
• raw materials used and its geographical origin
• quantitative aspects, if they are in the specification ( no more
than 1.5 cows/hectare, no less than 150 trees/hectare...)
• farm qualitative aspects like location, parcels, breeds, varieties,
seedling, origin and quality of feed
• verification on registers made by producers namely on
geographical origin of raw materials, on length of maturation,
on temperatures of certain operations, on age of slaughter..
• traceability and its supporting documents made by
producers/operators
• sampling,of raw materials and end products, if necessary
Depending on the product and on the Protected
Designation Scheme, verification of compliance with
specification plan can include
• laboratorial analyses, if necessary
• organoleptic evaluation (size, weight, appearence,type of
skin, shape, taste, smell)
• trade presentation, including labelling specific
requirements
• controls frequency as well as if some controls must be
done in certain year seasons or in specific premises or
during particular operations
• type of each control like documentary and or visual and or
laboratorial
Page 45
Control plan in the market place
• CAs must include controls in the market place as well
as for their own PDO/PGI or TSG products, as well as
for products coming from other MS and third
countries.
• The plan must take into account, as always, risk
analysis.
• So, depending on circumstances surveillance or
inspections can be done
Page 46
To Remember
– Verification of compliance is conducted on
producer’s request
– producer bear the cost of verification
– conducted before placing the product on the
market,
Risk assessment of each operator is a very
important tool
Page 47
SHARING TASKS
• A lot of controls are already made by
- Producers
•
or by
- Producer’s group
Page 48
So, in order to
save money and
time
Verification of compliance plan can include a lot
of controls made by producers and producers
group
Authorities or bodies
should supervise and check
the consistency and reliability
of those controls and registers
made by producers or producers group
and validate them
Control must be effective but at a
reasonable cost
Operators are always doing a
cost/benefit ratio
Page 50
Specification
Verification of
compliance
with the
specification
plan
51
•
Scope of the verification of
compliance
The scope is to verify if operators fulfil all specific product’s
criteria described in the specification and only in the scope of
specification
•
• geographical
boundaries,
• specific breeds or plants
varieties,
• specific methods of
production,
• precise size or weight or
shape
Page 52
•
Labelling (only in scope of requirements
of specification and Reg. 510 or
509/2006),
•
specific steps in production,
•
slicing, grating, packing,
•
banned practices,
•
for processed products – row materials,
•
specific taste/smell/sight
Example - Verification of compliance
with specification plan
Kee points
Provision of
Specification book
Type of control
Frequency
Farm location
Province X
Documentary
unique
Breed
Breed Z
Documentary
Unique
Herd book
Visual /
Documentary
Twice/year
Spring and
Autumn
Free range
Complementary
feed
must come from: farm
or province X
Visual
/documentary
Once/year
Slaughter
12/18 months
Documentary
Once/year
Ham maturation
18/24 months
Documentary
Once/year
Shape/smell/tast
Long, non salted.....
Panel
Once/year
Label
............
Visual
Once/year
..............
Page 53
Remarks
Slaughterhouse
As time goes by...
• Everybody will improve and will see that
verification of compliance plan is better when
- It is simple
- It is clear
- It is reliable
- It is costless...
- It is possible to be revised
Page 54
VERIFICATION PLAN MUST BE DESIGNED, ANALYSED AND
REVISED BY QUALIFIED STAFF WITH:
• Deep knowledge of the records and written documents
required to assure product traceability and compliance with
product specification
• Deep knowledge on raw materials, production row,
preparation, maturation, harvesting...
• Deep knowledge on end product characteristics, like taste,
smell, appearance, weight, size, type of presentation, and on
its labelling, advertising material, selling conditions.... .
55
...and it is usually helpful to talk/work with
producers group
Staff
-
Qualified staff (appropriate academic degree)
Stage in a real situation, inside production row
Stage abroad, if possible
Formation on job
Page 56
• GI system and GI products
• Deserve all our efforts
kiitos