“Balsamic”: A Global Debate

Abstract

The World Trade Organization (WTO) protects a form of intellectual property known as “Geographical Indication” (GI). GI’s are “indications which identify a product 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 product is essentially attributable to its geographical origin”. GI groups together three distinctive systems:, Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), Protected Geographical Indication (PGI), and Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (TSG).Currently, there are four vinegars with PDO and two with PGI status. The first vinegars to achieve GI status were the two Traditional Balsamic Vinegars of Modena and Reggio Emilia in the year 2000. The most recent was the PGI for Zhenjiang Xiang Cu in the year 2012. Today, with a few decades of experience since the implementation of GI, it is time to draw up a balance of the costs and benefits of the system.