US Dairy Industry Sees Geographic Indication Requirements in EU-Canada Trade Agreement as Troubling
The EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement includes geographical indications (GI) requirements that "clearly violate Canadian intellectual property procedures and existing international trade commitments," said the International Dairy Foods Association in a Sept. 21 news release. Specifically, "of deep concern…
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to the U.S. dairy industry is the automatic protection the EU gained for five generic cheese names: 'asiago,' 'feta,' 'fontina,' 'gorgonzola' and 'munster.'" The agreement took provisional effect on Sept. 21 (see 1709200024). "U.S. cheese manufacturers that began producing those types of cheeses after October 18, 2013, will be required to add qualifiers, such as 'kind,' 'type,' 'style' and 'imitation' for sales in Canada," the trade group said. The group is "diligently working to ensure strong provisions that protect generic terms are included in NAFTA 2.0, as well as to discourage Mexico from going down the Canadian path as it negotiates a GIs list with the EU," said Michael Dykes, CEO of IDFA. The IDFA also said CETA restricts access for U.S. cheese exporters in Canada due to the reallocation to the EU of 800 metric tons.