Brussels, 28/07/2015 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission officially published the application for registration of the names Halloumi/Hellim (in Greek and Turkish) as protected designations of origin (PDO) for a Cypriot cheese made from goat's and/or ewe's milk, on Tuesday 28 July.
Once approved, protection will extend to producers all over the island and will be valid in both languages.
The Commission sent a letter on the same day confirming that Bureau Veritas will be responsible for the hygiene and quality checks required under Regulation 1151/2012 on quality agricultural products. In order to facilitate trade in this cheese, the Commission has also adopted a proposal to amend the green line regulation to establish the manner in which the control mechanism for goods covered by a name registered under the regulation would be applied in Turkish Cypriot areas.
These three initiatives result from an agreement on the protection of the cheese reached by the leaders of the two Cypriot communities during the visit of European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker to the island (see EUROPE 11362). “The common understanding reached around this application is highly symbolic and it confirms the willingness of the two parties to work together with the help of the Commission to build confidence with concrete measures”, Juncker stated in a press release.
Under the official PDO registration procedure, natural or legal persons not established or resident in Cyprus will have three months to raise objections to registration of the cheese - operators resident or established in Cyprus having already had the opportunity to do so in the framework of the national opposition procedure. If any opposition is raised, the Cypriot authorities and the opponents will have three months to reach an amicable agreement that will allow the registration of the product. If no agreement is reached, the Commission decides whether to register or not, taking into account the information at its disposal. (Mathieu Bion)