The Council of the EU is ready to negotiate with the European Parliament a final agreement on the proposed regulation on geographical indications for agricultural products. As announced on Monday 8 May, the delegations of the Special Committee on Agriculture (SCA) adopted a mandate detailing the Council’s position on the text concerning geographical indications (GIs) and quality systems (see EUROPE 13172/28).
The mandate does not give the European Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) any competence to examine applications for GI registration, a position very close to that of the European Parliament’s Agriculture Committee.
At the SCA, however, several delegations (Germany, Finland, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Luxembourg) reportedly expressed their willingness to find a better solution for the role of the EUIPO in the field of GIs during the trilogue negotiations. The European Commission, which initially wanted to give new roles to this agency, would have liked to see at least the possibility of requesting technical support from the EUIPO.
Other issues would have been raised at the SCA, such as the use of GI ingredients in pre-packaged foods or the importance of concrete deadlines for decisions on GI applications.
The European Parliament’s position will be adopted at the end of May in plenary. The Council and the European Parliament hope to conclude an agreement in the second half of 2023.
Link to the mandate: https://aeur.eu/f/6mj (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)