You may have seen recent articles in the national and
regional media about British food and drink products seeking EU Protected
Food Name status. There are currently 63 protected food names in the UK, and
many more have been proposed - with the UK
government wanting the number of protected British foods to increase to 200.
Here in Wales, for instance, nine products have been put
forward for consideration: Carmarthen ham, Traditional Welsh Caerphilly cheese,
Traditionally-reared Pedigree Welsh pork, Conwy mussels, Welsh laverbread, West
Wales coracle-caught salmon, West Wales coracle-caught sewin, Traditional Welsh
cider and Traditional Welsh perry. They will join products such as Halen Mon Anglesey
Sea Salt, which was awarded EU Protected Food Name status last year.
This post gives a bit more background, than found in
the mainstream media articles, about how these foods are considered by the European
Commission (EC) for protected name status.
The system for the protection of food names on a
geographical or traditional recipe basis in the EU dates from a piece of
legislation in 1993. The EU Protected
Food Name scheme was introduced to highlight regional and traditional foods
whose authenticity and origin can be guaranteed. It encourages diverse
agricultural production, protects product names from misuse and imitation, and
helps consumers by giving them information concerning the specific characteristics
of the products.
There are three marks (and logos) that can be awarded to regional
and traditional products:
Protected Designation
of Origin (PDO), which covers agricultural products and foodstuffs which
are produced, processed and prepared in a given geographical area using
recognised know-how;
Protected
Geographical Indication (PGI), which covers agricultural products and foodstuffs
closely linked to their geographical area (i.e. at least one key production
stage takes place in the area); and
Traditional
Speciality Guaranteed (TSG), which highlights traditional character, either
in the composition or means of production.
In Wales, for example, Welsh Lamb and Pembroke Early Potatoes
have been awarded PGI status, while Anglesey Sea Salt was the first Welsh
product to be awarded PDO status. The characteristic flavour of Welsh lamb
arises from traditional breeds and extensive farming practices; early potatoes
have long been grown in Pembrokeshire using a distinct method (e.g. leaving
stones in fields to warm the soil); while sea salt, produced in Anglesey since
Roman times, has a distinct appearance, flavour and mouthfeel compared to other
salts.
If a product is successful in its registration under the
scheme, it will be given legal protection against imitation throughout the EU. Inferior
imitation products in Italy and Spain, for instance, had been using ‘Halon Mon’
on their labels – under the EU Protected Food Name scheme the producers of these can be prosecuted.
Registration also raises awareness of regional
and speciality foods throughout Europe.
The UK government, through DEFRA
(Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs), gives guidance on how to apply
to register a product under the EU Protected Food Name scheme: https://www.gov.uk/protected-food-names-guidance-for-producers
Applications (based on a template supplied by the EC) can be
put forward by groups of producers or individuals. The Caws Cenarth diary is
applying through DEFRA, for example, to register Traditional Welsh Caerphilly. The submission, which is for PDO status, is the final
stages of review and includes details of milk sourcing and the production process,
a definition of the product’s chemical composition, and a history of Caerphilly
cheese production in the area. These submissions are a good source of
information about the food products: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/317278/welsh-caerphilly-specification.pdf
In the case of Carmarthen Ham (“an air dried salt cured ham
made from pork legs”) the application is being made by Chris Rees and his
family, who have handed down the recipe for five generations. You can read their
application for PGI status here: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/380562/carmarthen-ham-pgi-spec-141127.pdf
Selwyn's Penclawdd Seafoods in Llanmorlais, Swansea, is seeking
PDO status for Welsh laverbread: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/388236/welsh-laverbread-spec-update.pdf
The Conwy Mussel Group submitted an application for protected
name status for Conwy mussels: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/395767/conwy-mussels-prod-spec20150113.pdf
The application for traditionally reared pedigree Welsh pork,
also in the final stages of review, is for TSG status: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/360526/traditionally-reared-pedigree-welsh-pork-specification.pdf
The Carmarthen Coracle and Netsmen’s Association are
applying for PGI status for both West Wales coracle caught salmon and West
Wales coracle caught sewin: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/256321/wwcc-salmon-spec.pdf
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/256322/wwcc-sewin-spec.pdf
Meanwhile, the Welsh Perry and Cider Society Limited, representing
44 producers and based in Newport, is applying for PFO status for both
Traditional Welsh cider and Traditional Welsh perry:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/339507/welsh-cider-pdo.pdf
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/339508/welsh-perry-pdo.pdf
There is also an amendment to an application for Welsh beef
(PGI status) in the system:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/278748/welsh-beef-pgi.pdf
At the national level, an application dossier compiled by
the submitting producer group or individual is assessed by DEFRA. This is
subjected to a national opposition procedure, giving other organisations or individuals
an opportunity to query the application. All valid applications are then sent to the European
Commission for assessment. The relevant EC committee first looks at each
application to see if it complies with the relevant legislation, primarily four
EC Food Quality regulations. This process can take up to six months, after
which applications are either rejected or published in an EU Official Journal.
From this, an EU-wide opposition procedure starts whereby objections from other
producers or individuals can be made over a three-month period. If any
objection is made, there is a two-month period for deciding on the validity of
objections. Finally, successful applications are registered under the scheme as
a protected food name.
There can be big economic benefits to having regional food
names protected. The Welsh Government, for example, is promoting the country as
a food tourism destination; so a greater number of recognised regional
specialities is desirable. In other parts of the UK, similar economic benefits
could occur, for example, in Birmingham’s Balti Triangle if Birmingham Balti is successful
in getting TSG status within the EU Protected Food Names scheme.
The Protected Food Name scheme is a continuous process, so not all the decisions
are reported at once. You can search the EC DOOR database ("Database Of
Origin & Registration") to find how each application for EU Protected
name status is doing (Applied, Published or Registered): http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/quality/door/list.html
I will report back at a later date with some analysis
on the outcomes of the above applications.
The Ark of Taste is SlowFood’s catalogue of disappearing local
food culture. On board The Ark are breeds of domesticated animal, cultivated
plants, and artisan food products and techniques, all in need of recognition and
protection to prevent them from disappearing.
Many local products and traditional production methods have
suffered due to competition with cheaper, mass-produced, year-round-imported
food items, such as those mainly sold in supermarkets. Farmers, producers and
restaurant owners are fighting back by promoting local food systems based
on heritage breeds and varieties, sustainable and seasonal production, local food
sourcing and regional cuisine.
The Ark of Taste brings together small-scale, quality food
production from diverse cultures and traditions worldwide. It draws attention to the existence of an extraordinary heritage
of animal breeds, fruit and vegetable varieties, fish and seafood resources,
cheeses, breads, and numerous artisan products, all of which are at risk of extinction
within generations given present trends. Administered by the SlowFood
Foundation for Biodiversity, it invites everyone to take action to help protect
the items in The Ark. This can involve buying and consuming artisan products,
supporting their producers, or taking part in various campaigning initiatives.
The Ark of Taste currently (25 April 2015) has 2431
products on board from all around the world (see http://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/ark).
For a taster of these, ‘The Food Programme’ on BBC Radio 4 is currently featuring
stories of some Ark of Taste products (e.g. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02pdjh9).
On board The Ark are 83 products from the UK. These are mainly rare animal breeds
(21); artisan cheeses from specific localities (10); localised fish and shellfish
(10); fresh fruit and dried fruit products, including nuts (11); and vegetables
(9). Also included are cured meat products, cereals and flour, baked products, spirits,
pulses, seaweed (dulse) and honey. Further details of these 83 products are
given on the SlowFood UK website (http://www.slowfood.org.uk/ff-products/).
There are currently 5 Welsh products (6%) among the 83 UK
products in The Ark of Taste: a cheese, two animal breeds, a rare apple
variety, and a seafood. The following information on these products is mainly gleaned from the SlowFood UK website:
1. Artisan Caerphilly
Cheese
Traditional Caerphilly is a hard, crumbly white cheese, with
a short maturation period, made using unpasteurised milk. It has long been
produced by hand, on small family-run farms, as a means of using and preserving
surplus milk. When sold in local markets, it was typically in the form of 5 or
10 lb truckles. From the 1830’s onwards, it became associated with Caerphilly
because of its popularity among the town’s mining community.
Today, it is in competition with a very different young
cheese product, also called Caerphilly, which is mass-produced using
pasteurised milk and sold more cheaply in supermarkets. Traditional Caerphilly
cheese is now produced by only a limited number of creameries in South Wales,
such as Caws Cenarth. A small quantity of aged Caerphilly is also available from
artisan producers.
2. Badger Face Welsh
Mountain Sheep
The Badger Face Welsh Mountain Sheep is a low-maintenance
Welsh mountain breed. It has two sub-types, both being relatively small and
hardy: the Torddu (black belly) and Torwen (white belly). This breed produces
milk, wool and high-quality meat having an excellent
flavour. Although a very old breed, it was first officially recognised in 1976,
when a small group of farmers in mid Wales, who were breeding the sheep, formed
the Badger Face Welsh Mountain Sheep Society.
Pedigree flocks are relatively small and mostly kept by
smallholders for their unique characteristics. They are slow to mature. Small-scale producers, such as Hebsnbadgers and
Llwyn-on, are promoting it as a Slow Meat product.
3. Bardsey Island Apple
A medium-sized, sweet and juicy, pink eating apple with a
unique lemon aroma, the Bardsey Island Apple is a very rare variety. The mother
tree grows by a house built by Lord Newborough in the 1870’s on Bardsey Island,
where it is continually ‘pruned’ by salt-laden gales. The trees produced by grafting from it are
resilient and disease-resistant, requiring no chemical spraying.
The SlowFood UK website relates how, in 1998, ornithologist Andy
Clarke brought several apples from the tree to local fruit grower Ian Sturrock
for identification. He, in turn, took them to the National Fruit Collection in
Brogdale, where the Bardsey Island Apple was declared a new variety. The
variety is grown by Ian Sturrock & Sons of Bangor and other small-scale
producers in North Wales, where it has spearheaded a resurgence of interest in
old and almost extinct Welsh Varieties.
4. Pedigree Welsh Pig
The Welsh Pig was first referenced in the 1870’s, and the
Welsh Pig Society (formed 1922) played an important role in increasing numbers
and developing its commercial characteristics. The pig is white with lop ears,
a curly tail, and a long body. It is hardy and thrives in both indoor and
outdoor conditions. The breed has a traditional pork flavour, and produces
high-quality, well-developed hams, with a desirable ratio of meat (70%) to fat
(30%). Although it has characteristics that could be of valuable to the modern
pig industry, numbers have continued to decline due to competition with commercial
breeds. Small producers, such as Kilvrough Welsh Pigs on the Gower, rear Pedigree
Welsh Pig non-intensively.
5. Penclawdd Cockles
Penclawdd Cockles are removed from the low-tide sands of the
Burry Estuary, near Swansea, by pulling a flat cart (once by donkey, now
a tractor) with a metal scrape to expose them for hand-picking. A government
decree in 1965 only permits licensed gatherers to take cockles, within limited
quotas. They are sold at local markets,
either boiled and peeled or untreated. The cockle industry in Penclawdd has
suffered due to water pollution and mismanagement of stocks, though there has
been a recovery in recent years.
Many of the traditional products in The Ark of Taste have
helped shape local cuisine. Protecting these products helps preserve the recipes,
knowledge and history surrounding them, which may also be at risk of being
lost. This is certainly true of Penclawdd Cockles. ‘Welsh
breakfast’ is a traditional local breakfast that includes cockles fried in
bacon fat, laverbread and fried eggs, for instance, while the Swansea Cockle
Festival is celebrated every September.
In ‘The Taste of Britain’ (2006, HarperPress), Laura Mason
and Catherine Brown explored the traditional foods of Britain. The section on Wales
includes further information on Caerphilly Cheese, Welsh Mountain Sheep, Penclawdd
Cockles and other traditional foods closely identified with parts of Wales,
including Glamorgan Sausage, Laverbread, Sewin (sea trout), Welsh Black Cattle,
Aberffraw Cake, Welsh Cakes and Teisen Lap (fruit cake).
By this point, you will have realised that there is room in
The Ark of Taste for many more products of the type described above, from
countries all around the world, which would benefit from inclusion.
One of the many aims of the newly-established SlowFood South East
Wales group (see links below) is to research and identify further Welsh products
for potential inclusion in The Ark of Taste.
Previous posts on Slow Food in South East Wales:
http://sfnottingham.blogspot.co.uk/2015/03/slow-food-south-east-wales-launches.html
http://sfnottingham.blogspot.co.uk/2015/02/slow-food-in-cardiff.html
