Brussels, 15/11/2011 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 15 November, the European Court of Auditors criticised the geographical indications (GI) scheme aimed at protecting product names which are registered as protected designation of origin (PDO) or protected geographical indication (PGI), whose overall wholesale value is estimated at €15 billion annually. The Court of Auditors' audit reached the conclusion that: - the legal provisions do not lay down minimum requirements for member states' checks on product specifications; - the regulation does not clearly define the member states' obligation to carry out checks to prevent and detect disallowed practices, with the result that most of the national authorities audited do not carry out regular checks in view of detecting and suppressing these practices; - and the Commission does not closely monitor the implementation of the GI scheme in member states. Finally, the Court notes that there are many producers who would be interested but “potential applicants are often not aware of the scheme or are discouraged by the lengthy application procedures”. Consumer recognition of the scheme and its symbols is very low. (LC/transl.jl)