Publication of an application for registration of a name pursuant to Article 50(2)(a) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs

(2022/C 93/09)

This publication confers the right to oppose the application pursuant to Article 51 of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council (1) within three months from the date of this publication.

SINGLE DOCUMENT

‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’

EU No: PGI-DE-02601 – 1 April 2020

PDO ( ) PGI (X)

1.   Name(s) of PGI

‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’

2.   Member State or Third Country

Germany

3.   Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff

3.1.   Type of product

Class 1.2. Meat products (cooked, salted, smoked, etc.)

3.2.   Description of the product to which the name under point 1 applies

‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’ is a traditional pork product from the economic region of Spreewald. The lean meat content has a very firm bite and the pieces of pickled gherkin remain crunchy even after the brawn has been added. The brawn itself has a mellow, mildly spicy taste and is clear. As a result, ‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’ has a good structure and looks appetising, with its mixture of clear aspic, lean pieces of flesh-coloured meat and green pickled gherkins. The taste of ‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’ is generally described as being sweet and sour, and mellow.

The ingredients include at least 40 % pig’s head meat, plus at least 10 % lean pork and at least 7 % ‘Spreewälder Gurken’. The cucumber pieces remain distinctly firm to the bite in the final product. Besides the meat from the pig’s head, the product typically also contains lean pork such as additional lean cheek meat from the head and/or lean de-sinewed meat from the knuckle and/or the shoulder. All the meat is cured.

This specification means the fat content is relatively low and gives the product a meaty flavour overall. Other ingredients are possible depending on the recipe, including onions, drinking water, vinegar, table salt, seasoning (pepper, caraway or mustard seeds) and/or spice extracts, sugar, edible gelatine and acidifiers, antioxidants, preservatives and stabilising agents. Per 100 g the average nutrition values are: less than 13 g fat, carbohydrates, of which 8 g or less is sugar, 9-15 g protein and 2,2 g or less salt.

The aspic is prepared using gherkin liquid (water, spirit vinegar, sugar and salt) as well as drinking water to lend a mild flavour to the aspic. The pH value is between 3,5 and 4,7, corresponding to the acid value of the gherkin liquid. The boil-off from the brawn and/or the broth from the boiling process is added to the pig’s head and other lean meat, as are drinking water and seasoning as applicable. In their prepared form, ‘Spreewälder Gurken’ have a total acidity of less than 1 % from fermented vinegar. They are also sweetened with sugar.

3.3.   Feed (for products of animal origin only) and raw materials (for processed products only)

The gherkins, which are the ingredient giving the product its distinct character, must meet the conditions for the ‘Spreewälder Gurken’ PGI.

3.4.   Specific steps in production that must take place in the identified geographical area

All the production steps described take place in the defined geographical area.

The meat from the front of the pig’s head and other lean meat is cured, boiled and then cut into pieces and/or used whole in the product.

The aspic is made from drinking water and/or boil-off from the brawn (clarified or not) or broth in which the pig’s head and other lean meat was boiled and/or edible gelatine as well as the seasonings referred to above.

The chopped up pieces of pig’s head and rough cuts of lean meat and/or whole cheeks, cucumbers meeting the conditions for ‘Spreewälder Gurken’ PGI diced and pickled in stock with no other solid ingredients or as roughly-diced ‘Spreewälder Gurken’ are then added to the still-liquid aspic. Gherkin liquid is then added and mixed in, along with the following, depending on the recipe: chopped onions, seasoning (e.g. pepper, caraway or mustard seeds) and/or spice extracts, sugar, vinegar, table salt and, where applicable, acidifiers, antioxidants, preservatives and stabilising agents.

The brawn is then left to cool.

3.5.   Specific rules concerning slicing, grating, packaging, etc. of the product the registered name refers to

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3.6.   Specific rules concerning labelling of the product the registered name refers to

Labelling must show the business identification number and/or the manufacturer batch control number, which every manufacturer can provide.

4.   Concise definition of the geographical area

The geographical area is the Spreewald economic area. In the north, the area runs along the boundary of the rural district of Dahme-Spreewald from the boundary of the rural district of Spree-Neisse to the northern boundary of Münchehofe, crossing the rural district of Dahme-Spreewald along the northern boundaries of Münchehofe, Märkisch-Buchholz, Halbe and Freidorf up to the western boundary of the rural district of Dahme-Spreewald; in the west, the Spreewald economic region is delimited by sections of the boundaries of the rural districts of Dahme-Spreewald and Oberspreewald-Lausitz, from Freidorf to Bronkow; in the south, the boundary runs along the southern boundaries of the administrative regions of Calau and Altdöbern (rural district of Oberspreewald-Lausitz) and the Drebkau and Neuhausen administrative regions of the rural district of Spree-Neisse; in the east, the Spreewald economic region is delimited by the eastern boundaries of the administrative regions of Neuhausen and Peitz and the western border of the administrative region of Schenkendöbern (which is also the boundary of the rural district of Spree-Neisse).

5.   Link with the geographical area

‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’ is a popular and well-known speciality from the Spreewald region. The specific link between the product and its area of production comes from its special reputation based on its origin in the area concerned, which is known for including gherkins in brawn and in which these gherkins also hold a protected geographical indication.

(1)   Specificity of the geographical area:

Many specialities containing gherkins have been developed in the Spreewald economic region. These include traditional meat products using these gherkins to specific effect. Among them is ‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’, which has been produced and traded in the economic region of Spreewald for at least two generations, with records of its production going back to 1955, including by the state-owned business Golßener Fleisch- und Wurstwaren at the meat factory in Cottbus, the predecessor of Golßener Fleisch- und Wurstwaren GmbH.

Unlike other regions, only the economic region of Spreewald is well known for using gherkins as an ingredient in pork brawn. This was already the case during the GDR era, as can be seen in particular (as a reverse conclusion) from the highly detailed manufacturing specifications from the GDR in which no other specification of brawn refers to gherkins as an ingredient, such as for example the GDR standard TGL 29213/03, Group 17260 of October 1974.

(2)   Specificity of the product:

The specific character of ‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’ comes from the high proportion of lean meat used (by the additional use of lean pig cheeks and/or lean, de-sinewed meat from the knuckle and/or shoulder), which gives the brawn a sweet-and-sour, mellow flavour. It further gets its character from the cucumbers with the ‘Spreewälder Gurken’ PGI, which are added either diced and pickled in stock with no other solid ingredients or as Spreewälder gherkins, roughly diced. The specific taste of this ingredient remains unchanged during its processing to make the final product ‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’.

(3)   Causal link:

‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’ has established itself among end consumers across Germany as a popular and well-known product. According to a consumer survey carried out by the Humboldt University of Berlin during the 2003 International Green Week, when respondents were asked which meat and sausage specialities from the Spreewald region they had heard of, the most frequent reply was ‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’.

Over the next few years, between 2006 and 2019, the German Agricultural Society (DLG) awarded 13 gold medals, six silver and two bronze medals to ‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’ in various forms. There has been considerable media interest in the product, for example in articles in the ‘Berliner Zeitung’ newspaper on 20 January 1996 and 30 March 1996, and a report in the ‘Lebensmittel Zeitung’ newspaper dated 15 April 2005. A video on how to prepare ‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’ with fried potatoes and tartar sauce on Topfgucker-TV, the largest German-speaking YouTube channel for professional recipes has over 5 000 views, and a recipe for ‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’ has also been posted to the ‘Feine Küche’ blog.

In 2006, as part of the European Union’s LEADER programme, LAG Spreewaldverein e.V. published 10 000 copies of a brochure describing the structure of production and supply chains for ‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’.

The growing renown and popularity of ‘Spreewälder Gurkensülze’ is also borne out by the fact that, in recent years, the sales area has expanded from East Germany to the whole of Germany. The market significance of the product has seen continuous growth. In the period 2010-2019, sales increased by 40 %.

Reference to publication of the product specification

https://register.dpma.de/DPMAregister/geo/detail.pdfdownload/41797

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(1)  OJ L 343, 14.12.2012, p. 1.