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It's only a matter of time before you start seeing ham cured in the same fashion but produced in other countries. US is now starting to have local production in

It's only a matter of time before you start seeing ham cured in the same fashion but produced in other countries. US is now starting to have local production in Virginia and Texas (it takes between 2 and 3 years for a good leg of jamón to cure properly) and China is doing the same. Spain might try to protect the trademark of "jamón ibérico" the same way that France protects Champagne but in the end, you'll be able to buy good jamón produced elsewhere the same way you can buy a good bottle of sparkling wine from Italy, Spain or California. There are a lot of acorn fields in the US, China and Korea so plenty of room for pigs to eat.

namdnay 9y ago
It's not a trademark, it's a designation of geographical origin. France doesn't "protect" Champagne - it's just that if you call something Champagne it has to be real Champagne - i.e. be made in Champagne, following the Champagne method. Just like Campana Mozza, Feta, etc. It's as much for the consumer as it is for the producer. And there are rows of "Sparkling Wine according to the Champagne method" in French supermarkets, right next to the real stuff
- mseebach 9y ago
  > France doesn't "protect" Champagne Oh, but they do. This goes a lot beyond simple geographical "truth in advertising", and is indeed a lot more similar to a trademark. As you mention, it's not enough for a wine to be produced in the region of Champagne to be allowed to be called Champagne, it has to be produced within very narrow parameters. Jamon Iberico is indeed protected, and again, there's quite a bit more going into this than ham produced on the Iberian peninsula. It's more pronounced with feta cheese, which does not have a geography in the name, yet have to be made in particular areas of Greece. This is not to say this is bad, trademarks are generally a good thing, but let's not pretend there aren't strong protection-motives at play. (As an aside, the process also sometimes backfires and inhibits innovation as in the case of "super-Tuscans", some fantastic wines produced in Tuscany, but not qualifying under the Chianti protection, and instead was released as table wine, ie. the lowest classification, while Chianti had languished as a profoundly mediocre product.)
  - namdnay 9y ago
    Well yes they are narrow parameters - those are the parameters which define the product! I can't paint an apple red and call it a tomato... Same thing with Champagne. If it follows the definition of Champagne - made in Champagne following the Champagne method - it's Champagne. If not, it isn't. Of course there are protection motives - but can you criticise the EU for ensuring that stalls aren't flooded with fakes? As a consumer I don't want to have to do extensive research on everything I buy - "Is this organic strawberry really organic?", "Are these Jersey Royals really from Jersey?", "Is this really Champagne?"
- bpicolo 9y ago
  > France doesn't "protect" Champagne They sure do. They bake regulations on the naming into foreign trade agreements
  - namdnay 9y ago
    I'm sure the US wouldn't let me sell silver that is actually nickel either - it seems logical to insist that goods are labelled truthfully

namdnay 9y ago

It's not a trademark, it's a designation of geographical origin. France doesn't "protect" Champagne - it's just that if you call something Champagne it has to be real Champagne - i.e. be made in Champagne, following the Champagne method. Just like Campana Mozza, Feta, etc. It's as much for the consumer as it is for the producer. And there are rows of "Sparkling Wine according to the Champagne method" in French supermarkets, right next to the real stuff

mseebach 9y ago
> France doesn't "protect" Champagne Oh, but they do. This goes a lot beyond simple geographical "truth in advertising", and is indeed a lot more similar to a trademark. As you mention, it's not enough for a wine to be produced in the region of Champagne to be allowed to be called Champagne, it has to be produced within very narrow parameters. Jamon Iberico is indeed protected, and again, there's quite a bit more going into this than ham produced on the Iberian peninsula. It's more pronounced with feta cheese, which does not have a geography in the name, yet have to be made in particular areas of Greece. This is not to say this is bad, trademarks are generally a good thing, but let's not pretend there aren't strong protection-motives at play. (As an aside, the process also sometimes backfires and inhibits innovation as in the case of "super-Tuscans", some fantastic wines produced in Tuscany, but not qualifying under the Chianti protection, and instead was released as table wine, ie. the lowest classification, while Chianti had languished as a profoundly mediocre product.)
- namdnay 9y ago
  Well yes they are narrow parameters - those are the parameters which define the product! I can't paint an apple red and call it a tomato... Same thing with Champagne. If it follows the definition of Champagne - made in Champagne following the Champagne method - it's Champagne. If not, it isn't. Of course there are protection motives - but can you criticise the EU for ensuring that stalls aren't flooded with fakes? As a consumer I don't want to have to do extensive research on everything I buy - "Is this organic strawberry really organic?", "Are these Jersey Royals really from Jersey?", "Is this really Champagne?"
bpicolo 9y ago
> France doesn't "protect" Champagne They sure do. They bake regulations on the naming into foreign trade agreements
- namdnay 9y ago
  I'm sure the US wouldn't let me sell silver that is actually nickel either - it seems logical to insist that goods are labelled truthfully