(2004/C 78 E/0480)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3012/03

by Jaime Valdivielso de Cué (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(14 October 2003)

Subject:   Wine

Amidst the tortuous negotiations over alcoholic beverages and foods, has the Commission been able to discuss with the other members of the WTO the list of geographical indications that the European Union would like to see protected internationally?

This list includes several names of wine, such as Rioja, and other food products.

Does the Commission believe that it will be possible to reach an agreement in this area, given the strong resistance shown by countries like the United States, who have grown used to freely misappropriating Community names?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(18 November 2003)

The Community presented its short list of geographical indications in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) agriculture negotiations at the end of August 2003 in Geneva. Given the short term between its submission to the WTO and the Fifth Ministerial Conference, there was no time to discuss the list before Cancun. Unfortunately, due to the course of events in the Conference, it was not possible to discuss it in Cancun.

The Commission considers that this is a very important issue in order to guarantee effective protection of geographical names which are being abused worldwide. It will, therefore, continue asking for this matter to be an integral part of the negotiations in Geneva, though the degree of acceptance of this proposal by other WTO Members appears to be low at this stage.