New regulation on geographical indications of certain food industry sites

Quality labels (geographical indications, designations of origin) protect and promote the origin, traditions and unique characteristics of many typical products within the EU. 

Geographical indications such as "Irish whiskey", "Bavarian beer" and "Tuscan wine" protect the products registered under their umbrella from misuse or imitation of the registered name and are a guarantor of the authentic origin of the product. With the development of the free market within the EU, there is a need for products to be protected in a uniform way in terms of origin for the purpose of easier and more accessible recognition, guaranteeing quality and originality. 

On 23.04.2024, it was published in the Official Journal of the EU Regulation (EU) 2024/1143 of the European Parliament and of the Council on geographical indications for wines, spirit drinks and agricultural products, as well as traditional specialities guaranteed and optional quality terms for agricultural products. It amends Regulations (EU) No. 1308/2013, (EU) 2019/787 and (EU) 2019/1753 and repeals Regulation (EU) No. 1151/2012. It should be noted that the objects in question do not fall within the scope of the Trademarks and Geographical Indications Act of the Republic of Bulgaria, therefore the Regulation is directly applicable in our country. 

As of 13.05.2024, changes will be introduced to the EU intellectual property legislation in the field of geographical indications, aiming to consolidate the existing regulations and procedures into a single framework, which aims to increase the efficiency of the geographical indications registration process. This step demonstrates the EU's commitment to supporting the intellectual property rights of producers across the EU. 

Under the new regulation in the foreseeable future The EUIPO is tasked with creating and maintaining a Union Register of Geographical Indications, similar to the existing EU Trade Mark Register. To this end, the Regulation provides for a uniform procedure for the registration and protection of geographical indications for EU Member States. 

In summary, the amendments are as follows: 

• Introduction of a unified legal framework and a shortened registration procedure: the different rules on procedures and protection of geographical indications have been unified for the three sectors (food, wine and spirits), resulting in a single simplified procedure for registering a geographical indication for EU and non-EU applicants. This simpler legal framework with shorter registration deadlines is expected to increase the attractiveness of the schemes for producers, especially in countries with fewer geographical indications; 
• The new rules increase the protection of geographical indications used as an ingredient in a processed product and of geographical indication products sold onlineThe new regulation will also protect geographical indication names in the domain name system by obliging Member States to block domain names on their territory that may infringe a geographical indication name; 
• Recognition of sustainable practices: producers will be able to label their products in terms of environmental, social or economic sustainability (ESG policies), including animal welfare.  
• Powers of producer groups: under the new rules, MS will be able to create voluntary system of recognized groups of geographical indication holdersTo increase the popularity and relevance of the system, these groups will be empowered to manage, enforce and develop their geographical indications, thus helping to unify practices in the field. 

Enforcement of geographical indications remains the responsibility of the Member States. It includes monitoring the correct use of registered names and combating fraud in the production, sale and use of geographical indications. At EU level, the Commission remains responsible for the registration, amendment and cancellation of registrations. 

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