Area and Name Protection

One of the columns on the lovely cheese spreadsheet to your right is labeled "Area Protected", but what does that mean?

With cheese being such a profitable industry there are big names and there are small names. Roquefort, for example, will be known by any cheese buyer/importer/connoisseur instantly, and associated with that name comes both a great deal of respect and a willingness to pay top dollar. The next question, then, is what's stopping just any old dairy, or more likely soulless dairy conglomerate, from calling their pathetic creation Roquefort and making an easy buck? 

In the case of Roquefort the French  Appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) system mandates that any cheese calling itself Roquefort must be made in a certain region and in a certain manner. The rules for each cheese are different but even the breed of sheep used is specified for Roquefort in order to protect the quality and reputation of such a beloved national product. 

Spain has a similar system, the protection of which is granted to products after an application process of sorts, called Denominación de Origen (DO), Italy has Denominazione di origine controllata (DOC), and Portugal has Denominação de Origem Controlada (DOC). Other countries have similar programs, but the question here of course is "so what?". These are all domestic laws and only keep food from being plagiarized within their borders. Enter the EU!

 

In 1992 the Protected Geographical Status (PGS) legislation came into force and introduced a whole new alphabet soup on top of and alongside the existing national level laws. Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), Protected Geographical Indication (PGI), and Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (TSG) refer to, well the names say it pretty well. These laws further protect items within the EU and abroad thanks to bi-lateral agreements with non-EU members, ensuring the high quality foods, wines, and other goods remain high quality. 

It's not a perfect system and some producers of name controlled cheeses still make a better product than others, but it's a start and it does have real benefits for those with a tradition to protect. Cheddar, for example, is an English cheese that you can find a hundred bad examples of in the US. What you won't find, however, is a bad West Country Farmhouse Cheddar Cheese because that name is protected by PDO status. Take a look at poor Brie. The unspeakable crimes against this cheese boggle the mind, but find a wheel of Brie de Meaux (AOC) and you're in for a treat. 

Most cheeses with this protected status are going to be proud of it and display some sort of seal on a label or even on the rind itself, look for any combination of acronyms and go from there. Although name controlled status is not a guarantee that you'll like a particular cheese you can at least take comfort in the fact that you're getting a premium product that's been made according to very high standards. Of course, you can still buy those "Armani" sunglasses off the street vendor in NYC but if you're serious then you're going to dish out for the real deal.