Roquefort, feta and Parma ham sow discord between Europe and Australia

Published 2023년 6월 8일

Tridge summary

After five years of negotiations, the European Union (EU) and Australia are at an impasse over a proposed free trade deal due to the EU's insistence on protecting over 400 product names, including cheeses, wines, and charcuterie, under controlled designs of origin (AOC). The dispute has led to threats from Australia to withdraw from the deal, with their cheese, wine, and charcuterie producers refusing to accept the EU's restrictions. Despite potential benefits like reduced customs duties on agricultural exports, Australia is resisting, arguing that it should be allowed to use these protected product names. Negotiations are still ongoing, with Australia seeking to reduce customs duties to reduce its dependence on certain countries, particularly Russia, while the EU is using the opportunity to protect its product names and reduce reliance on imports.

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Original content

After five years of negotiations, the controlled designations of origin (AOC), Parma ham, Roquefort cheese or even feta, still sow discord between the European Union and Australia. Canberra on Thursday threatened to pull out of a proposed free trade deal with Brussels because it would not allow its cheese, wine and charcuterie producers to use AOCs. As part of these long ongoing trade negotiations, the European Union has submitted to Australia a list of more than 400 products associated with its territories, which it wishes to protect. These are mainly cheeses, charcuterie or Irish spirits. From Brussels' point of view, only French producers around the Aveyron village of Roquefort should be able to claim the eponymous designation for their sheep's cheese. In the same way, the Dutch must be able to protect the name "gouda", cheese made in the Netherlands. But Canberra refuses to give in to these demands, despite all the advantages of the trade agreement which should allow the two ...

Source: Lefigaro