The European Union (EU) and China signed a bilateral agreement on the protection of geographical indications (GI) on September 14, 2020. The agreement is expected to enter into force in 2021. The agreement will protect 100 European geographical indications and as many Chinese geographical indications in the EU from usurpation and counterfeiting. Within four years of its entry into force, the scope of the agreement will be expanded to include additional 175 GI names from both sides. Cooperation between the EU and China began in 2006 and resulted in the protection of 10 GI names on both sides in 2012. At the end of 2019, China and the EU announced the conclusion of the talks.
The complete list of the EU 100 GIs you can find: here
The complete list of the 100 China named products you can find: here
Certain food and agricultural products can be protected as geographical indications of origin. In Europe, the legal basis is the EU Regulation No. 1151/2012 with the German implementation provisions in Sections 130-136 German MarkenG.
A distinction is made between two categories of protection:
- Protected designations of origin
- Protected Geographical Indications
In both cases, it must be a name that is used to identify the product. The product itself must come from a certain place, from a certain area or from a certain country. An essential protection requirement is the connection between the characteristics of the product and its manufacture in the area of origin.[1]
In the case of the designation of origin, this connection must be particularly close, i.e. all production steps must take place in the designated area. In the case of a geographical indication, on the other hand, it is sufficient if one of the production steps takes place in the area of origin and the quality, reputation or other characteristic of the product can be largely attributed to this geographical origin.
The application for the registration of a geographical indication / designation of origin must be submitted to the German Patent and Trademark Office in Germany.
The test takes place in two stages:
- initially by the DPMA
- then by the EU Commission, which also makes the entry
Protected geographical indications and designations of origin are to be taken into account as absolute obstacles to protection in trademark registration and nullity proceedings and as grounds for opposition in trademark conflict proceedings.
In Europe, more than 3300 names are protected as geographical indications or registered designations of origin. In addition, around 1,250 other products from third countries are protected by name in the EU, mostly through bilateral agreements, such as this one with China.[2]
In contrast, the method of protecting geographical trademarks in China is fundamental different so far. According to Section 10 of the Chinese Trademark Law, foreign place names known by consumers cannot be registered as trademarks (indirect protection).
According to § 4 of the regulations for the implementation of the trademark law in China, geographical indications / designations of origin can be protected as Chinese collective or certification marks. In addition, Section 16 of the Chinese Trademark Law states that if a trademark contains an indication of geographical origin but the product does not come from the area identified by this symbol and this misleads the public, this trademark can´t be registered and the use of the trademark is prohibited.
By August 2020, a total of 2385 products with geographical indications of origin had been approved in China.[3] These include alcoholic beverages, tea leaves, fruits, traditional handicrafts, foods, traditional Chinese medicines and water products.[4]
The EU list of geographical indications to be protected in China includes iconic GI products such as cava, champagne, feta, Irish whiskey, wódka, Porto, Prosciutto di Parma, Queso Manchego, Rioja, Kalamata olives, Manchego cheese and buffalo mozzarella as well as ouzo. German protected products include Bavarian and Munich beer as well as wine from Rheinhessen, Franconia and the Moselle.
The list of the Chinese GI products includes for example Pixian Dou Ban (Pixian Bean Paste), Anji Bai Cha (Anji White Tea), Panjin Da Mi (Rice), and Anqiu Da Jiang (Anqiu Ginger).
European products with geographical indications in China are known for their quality. Consumers are willing to pay a higher price because they trust the origin and authenticity of these products, which also benefits farmers.[5] Wines (Samos) and spirits, as well as Greek feta cheese, Spanish olive oil and Italian vinegar “made in China” were particularly popular in the past.[6]
This sometimes resulted in strange examples of how companies wanted to undermine the existing legal regulations. Since Parma ham is only allowed to come from Parma, the “smart” Chinese entrepreneur simply built a small settlement with the same name.[7] If the ham comes from Parma / China, it comes from “Parma”.
The GI agreement helps to protect the authenticity, to preserve the reputation of European products and at the same time to strengthen it.
According to the EU, the Chinese market has high growth potential for European food and beverages. In 2019, China was the country with the third highest number of agricultural and food product exports. According to the EU, exports reached 117 billion yuan (14.5 billion euros). China is also the second most important market for EU exports of alcoholic products including wine and spirits.[8]
[1] https://www.dpma.de/marken/geografische_herkunftsangaben/index.html
[2] https://ec.europa.eu/germany/news/20191106-geographische-Angaben-China_de
[3] http://www.sipo.gov.cn/docs/20200914145053272488.pdf
[4] http://de.china-embassy.org/det//zt/aa/t341647.htm
[5] https://www.wuerzburg.ihk.de/international/news/artikel/china-schutz-von...
[6] https://www.euractiv.de/section/eu-aussenpolitik/news/eu-laender-wollen-...
[7] https://www.abendblatt.de/vermischtes/kolumne/article108173027/Parma-Sch...
[8]https://www.bmel.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/Broschueren/Agrarbericht2019...