PDO Matters, or What’s So Special About The Cheesemakers?

Before moving onto what we actually want to talk about in this article, can we just quickly discuss something else?

Death, divorce and moving house are often mentioned as the most stressful things in life, but does anyone else think that dropping the hire car off at the end of a holiday could be well up there on that list?

Who hasn’t convinced themselves a panel is going to buckle just as it’s being inspected for damage and they’ll charge a million pounds, or you’ll get stung for 50 euros per ml the petrol tank is allegedly short of?

Anyway, back to the topic we’re here to discuss. As well as bringing up that nightmare, a recent family trip to Croatia brought to mind another IP lesson, because who doesn’t find important IP lessons in everything?

Food-wise, ćevapi are everywhere across the Balkans, Croatia included, and every grill house has a version going. Sarajevo ćevapi were granted protected status at a national level by Bosnia’s Food Safety Agency back in August 2024. Bosnia and Herzegovina is now going through the process of applying for full PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) recognition at EU level, the same regime that covers Parma ham and Champagne. We’ve talked about PDOs before, if you want to explore the subject in more depth.

The ćevapi example is a live illustration of the tension we see a lot of in IP work: shared regional food culture versus a protectable, ownable asset. Serbia and Bosnia have long disputed the origin of the dish, while Croatia, Montenegro and North Macedonia all have their own regional takes. A formal designation tying the name to one place is therefore likely to be controversial, especially coupled with some tension in the region that remains.

I think it was: “Blessed are the cheesemakers”!

When it comes to disputed food origins, historically there’s always been a certain tension created with similar PDO matters, for example:

Feta Cheese (Greece vs. Global Producers)

Greek Feta makers seem to have been defending against foreign companies for the last 20 years, since being granted EU PDO status. Tens of thousands of Greek farmers make up to 120,000 tons of feta every year, with an estimated 30,000 to 40,000 tons exported around the world.

The latest legal challenge is against the good ol’ US of A where producers maintain that names such as Feta, Parmesan, Brie etc have become so widely used that they are generic terms, and consumers should be allowed to determine which cheeses earn a place on the market.

The Trump administration, perhaps unsurprisingly, agrees and has backed their position, pushing for trade agreements that protect the right of U.S. cheesemakers to sell their American-made versions of Feta and other EU PDO protected cheeses. It’s a dispute that’s unlikely to disappear anytime soon and Greek producers may very well find themselves involved in the same battles for the next 20 years.

Halloumi (Cyprus vs. Global Imitators)

In 2021, The Foundation for the Protection of the Traditional Cheese of Cyprus named Halloumi was successful in getting Halloumi recognised with a Protected Designation of Origin in the EU, covering production in Cyprus only. This protection does not apply to cheese sold in the UK as we’re no longer members of the EU. 

After the company Fontana applied for the marks “GRILLOUMI” and “GRILLOUMAKI” in the UK for services relating to providing food and drink, their applications were opposed by the Foundation based on their HALLOUMI trade mark. This opposition was dismissed by the Hearing Officer.

The Foundation appealed the decision to The High Court, who upheld the original decision concluding that the average consumer wouldn’t assume a restaurant called GRILLOUMI came from the halloumi producers.

This decision is another indication of problems The Foundation faces in distinguishing between geographical indications and trade marks.

The Lincolnshire Sausage (UK Local Butchers)

Thirteen Lincolnshire butchers sought Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status for the Lincolnshire Sausage under EU law back in 2004. The Lincolnshire Sausage Association(LSA) was formed in 2006 to support the application.

In 2010 a group of the butchers even went as far as putting a voluntary 5p tax on the sausages to support the PGI application.
Unfortunately for them, the application was subject to many objections from other producers of the sausage including the British Retail Consortium. In 2012 Defra rejected the application saying links (pardon the pun) between the sausage and the county were too vague to enshrine in law.

The LSA appealed but the final rejection came from food minister David Heath, and Defra suggested they should pursue protection for “Traditional Lincolnshire Sausage”.

There’s still a competition held every year in Lincoln to find the best Lincolnshire sausage.

Prosecco vs. Prošek (Italy vs. Croatia)

Italy’s Prosecco has had PDO status since ‘09 and Prosecco producers have blocked all attempts from Prošek, a Croatian traditional dessert wine that has been made for centuries, to use the name.

Under EU Accession terms Vino Dalmato was a suggested alternative. Some makers suggested using TWiFKAP, ‘The Wine Formerly Known as Prošek’.

The latest attempt, in 2021, tried for the traditional term status for Prošek rather than full Protected Designation of Origin status.

This one remains open, with no protection in place for Prošek as of yet.

Food, Culture, and Ownership

It will be worth watching how these disputes develop. Food traditions rarely fit neatly within national borders, particularly when recipes and methods have been shared across regions for generations. That can make the line between shared food culture and something that can be formally protected particularly interesting.

And, if nothing else, it gives us an excuse to talk about sausages, cheese and Monty Python while discussing intellectual property law.

How We Can Help

These cases of Protected Designation of Origin are a small example of the complexities of Intellectual Property rights.

At Asenda Law, our priority is to make the law accessible for our clients. That starts with offering practical advice, so if you’d like to talk about anything from intellectual property to commercial contracts, get in touch.