BREXIT minister Mike Russell has made a plea for Scotland’s vital food and drink brands to be protected after Brexit and to be given a “special place” in negotiations.
Under the Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) scheme the EU guarantees no trademark interference with the name of an area, a specific place or, in exceptional cases, a country, used as a description of an agricultural product or a foodstuff.
Scotch Beef, Scotch Lamb, and Scottish Farmed Salmon are three of the 14 protected food names in Scotland with the Arbroath Smokie, Dunlop Cheese and Stornoway Black Pudding among the localities given PGI status. Dundee Cake, Forfar Bridies and Ayrshire Early New Potatoes are currently in the advanced stages of consideration for PGI status.
There are 84 PGI food names across the UK, including the Stilton Blue cheese, Cornish Pasty and Cumberland sausage.
Scotland makes more use of Scottish branding abroad than any of the rest of the UK. Between them the current 14 PGI food and drink products earn more than £1 billion in exports in Scotland and Russell fears that Brexit will damage that income as counterfeiters try to cash in on the Scottish reputation for quality.
In a special article for The National in connection with our Save Our Scotland Brand campaign, Russell said: “We will need to ensure that in the negotiations on this topic there is a special place for Scottish PGIs in any new structure that emerges. Indeed we should be developing our own plans for such a system, and ones that integrate well with the continuing European process.
“Now that the talks on the future trade relationship between the UK and the remaining 27 EU companies are likely to start in the spring it is absolutely essential that Scotland’s voice is heard in defence of those special things and indeed in defence of our very existence on the global stage.
“Those, and all the other Protected Geographical Indicators not only guard us against cheap imitations but they also serve as great ambassadors for this beautiful but small country. They help people to get to know us and they build a brand loyalty which is, and will remain, of great benefit to us.”
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