Elements for the Organization
of Geographical Indications
under
Article 22.1 of the TRIPS Agreement
Warsaw, 26 April 2006
Denis Croze
Acting Director Advisor
Economic Development sector
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
Elements for the Organization
of Geographical Indications
 TRIPS
Definition  Article. 22.1
«
Indication which identify a good as
originating in the territory of a Member, or a
region or locality in that territory, where a
given quality, reputation or other
characteristic of the good is essentially
attributable to its geographical origin »
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Open Questions
 What
can be an indication: Names,
symbols, ... traditional expressions?
 Alternative or cumulative elements of the
definition?
 Production, preparation and processing in
the same area?
 Size of the of the place of origin (a tiny
wineyard to .. an entire country)?
 Traditional methods
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Appreciation of the elements
 Factual

approach (case by case)
Prerogative of the competent national
authorities, based on the criteria which are
specific and individual to them.
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Originating in the Territory
of a Member, or a Region or Locality
in that Territory
 Description
of the geographical area
 Delimitation according to political,
administrative, etc.. divisions
 Complete
correspondence not always necessary
 Demonstration (maps, borders of the area, ..)
Pedoclimatic map (link depends of soil or climate)
 Justification with the specific nature of the product
 List of different operations located in the area

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A given quality
 Description
of the product or method
– More or less complete
– Emphasis on organoloeptic aspects
 Description
of the Product
 Raw
material
 Main physical characteristics of the product
 Main chemical characteristics of the product
 Main microbiological and/or organoleptic
characteristics of the product
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A given quality
 Description
of the method for
manufactoring and obtaining the product
 Techniques
implemented
 Quality criteria of the final product
 All stages concerned (incl. packaging, slicing..)
 Examples:
– Animal breeds (breed, breeding practices, age ..)
– Plant productions ( varieties, dates of seeding and
harvesting, method of harvesting, storage, etc..)
– Manufactured products (raw materials,
manufacturing process, etc ..)
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Reputation of the Good
 Closely
linked to the history of the product
 first
use of the product, dates , first description,
conversion method, etc ..
 Detailed
description
 Bibliographical
references (literary quotations..) or
sometimes oral testimonies
 Distinctive character of the product
 Consumer ’s perception of the GI
 Economic value of the reputation
 Case
by case assesment
 Local,
national or international basis
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Other Characteristic of the Goods
Demonstration of the interaction between the area
and the natural and human factors (Terroir) built
up over time
 Description of the objective or subjective
characteristics which discriminate the product
within its reference family and refers to the
characteristics of :

 the
final product
 the practices linked to the manufactoring of the raw
material
 the conversion and production of the product
 the social and cultural representation that producers
and consumers of the product have
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Other Characteristic of the Goods
 Definition
in objective terms of the different
components of the product (color, shape,
texture, composition, etc..)
 Demonstration that the components of the
typical features have been
 constituted
by faithful and continuous local methods
 proven through collective use of the name relating to
the product
 with specified characteritics recognized by
manufacturers, processors, producers and
consumers.
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Essentially Attributable to its
Geographical Origin
 Link
with the geographical origin
 Demonstration of the correlation between
the place and one or more elements of the
definition
– Clear, objective, precise and detailed
– Identifying elements (quality, reputation, other
characteristic) justifying the link
– Proof (tracability) + specifications
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A double function
 Geographical
indications (as trademarks)
perform a double economic function:
– To provide information to the consumers on the
origin of the product
– To confer a form of protection to an intellectual
property right
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GIs and International Trade
 Globalization
of international trade and
increase mobility of goods 
 Increase
potential for confusion as to the origin and
deliberate free-riding on the reputation of a product
 Need for a better reliability of trade sources to
ensure that goods can be traced back to their
producers
 Benefits
of a Good Protection
 For
the region
 For the consumers
 For the indigenous people and local communities
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Added Value for the Region of
Origin
 Contribute
towards rural development
 Fix population in the deprived areas
 Encourage agricultural diversification
 Preserve bio-diversity, combat
desertification
 Preserve local know-how and natural
ressources
 Attract and develop eco and cultural
tourism
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Added Value For the Producers
 Enhance
protection and avoid economic
damages from illegitimate users
 Promote development of high quality value
added food products
 Increase market access opportunities
 Strategize SMEs exports on a good
marketing tool
 Allow better redistribution of the added
value in the production chain
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Value For the Local Communities
 Identified
as one of the more suitable
mechanism for the protection of traditional
knowledge (based on human/natural factors)
 Rights preserved collectively
 Rights protected indefinitely, Low cost
 No institution (firm of indiv.) exercices an
exclusive monopoly control over the
knowledge information embedded in the
protected indication
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Thank you
Denis.croze@wipo.int
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)