Italian balsamic vinegar producers in Modena are expecting significant changes this year regarding the legal protection of their product in Europe.
Following two recent judgements by German courts in November 2015 regarding ‘Italian-sounding’ branding, the Consortium for the Protection of Balsamic Vinegar of Modena expects a positive conclusion to other pending cases.
Last year, courts in the German cities of Cologne and Mannheim created a historic precedent by acknowledging the illegality of companies using Italian-sounding branding to convince consumers to “purchase counterfeit products”.
Every year, more than 95 million litres of balsamic vinegar are produced in the Italian province of Modena, of which over 90 per cent is exported to 120 countries around the world.
The sector's economic impact is also significant for Modena, where more than 70 manufacturers and 250 operators are based and employing 600 people.
According to the Director General of the Consortium for the Protection of Balsamic Vinegar of Modena, Federico Desimoni, the new legal situation could lead to the elimination of various imitative products, evocative of Modena’s balsamic vinegar, from the EU market, thus opening new marketing and commercial possibilities for the product.
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
