Towards the new EU geographical indications regulation for wine and spirits

The European Commission's initiative for the 'Revision of the EU Geographical Indication ("GI") schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs, wines and spirits' - launched in 2022 as part of the Green Deal and an integral part of the Farm to Fork strategy - led to a political agreement at the end of 2023.

The final compromise text published on 21/11/2023 is currently going through the approval process and is expected to be published and enter into force in March/April 2024. The new regulation introduces a unitary and comprehensive GI scheme for products with characteristics, attributes or reputation linked to the place of production, covering wines and spirits, and will replace EU Reg. 1151/2012, with consequent amendments to EU Reg. 1308/2013 (wine CMO and quality schemes in the wine sector) and EU Reg. 2019/787 (spirits). It aims to strengthen the position of GI producers, implementing bureaucratic simplification, guaranteeing certain timeframes for the examination of requests for registration and modification of production disciplinaries, offering new opportunities to GIs, and especially to 'minor' ones, and clarifying the role of the EUIPO.

UGIVI, which always pays great attention to new regulations, aims to provide an examination of the main profiles of the reform with regard to the wine sector, from greater protection, both internationally and online, which will be implemented ex-officio through a geo-blocking system and which will oblige member states to block access to content evocative of a wine, to greater transparency towards consumers, starting with the obligation to indicate the producer's name on GI labels, thus eliminating possible abuses in reference to these indications. The regulation will also entail a strengthening of the role of consortia, which will assume new powers, including the fight against devaluing practices, production planning up to six years and the promotion of wine tourism.