Recently, a reply from the Petition Office of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs to a netizen’s inquiry about “geographical indication certification policy for agricultural products” drew wide attention. The reply stated that in March 2022 the Ministry had already stopped the registration of “geographical indications of agricultural products,” including acceptance, review, public notice and announcement; and that the registration plans drawn up in 2022 were correspondingly suspended.
In addition, the Ministry issued an announcement on “repealing the Registration Procedures for Geographical Indications of Agricultural Products.”
China’s tea varieties are numerous, but for tea to move from farm product to a widely circulated commodity, brand-building work is required. The “geographical indication of agricultural products,” a public-interest instrument, is an important route to building regional public brands.
Now that the Ministry has stopped registering geographical indications of agricultural products, what impact will this have on the tea industry?
How did the geographical indication of agricultural products come into being?
Article 23 of the Agriculture Law, as amended in December 2002, provides: “Agricultural products that meet the prescribed requirements of place of origin and production norms may, in accordance with relevant laws or administrative regulations, apply to use geographical indications of agricultural products.” It was the first appearance of the term.
Emblem of the geographical indication of agricultural products
In December 2007, the Ministry of Agriculture promulgated and implemented the Measures for the Administration of Agricultural Products, marking the first time the Chinese government protected regional agricultural products within China under the designation “agricultural product.” Under those Measures, an applicant for registration of a geographical indication of an agricultural product is a specialized farmer cooperative economic organization, industry association or similar organization selected on merit by a people’s government at or above the county level according to specific conditions.
In 2008 the Ministry of Agriculture launched the registration and administration of geographical indications of agricultural products. In that same year, only two products were approved in the first batch: Hefeng tea, submitted by the Tea Industry Association of Hefeng County, Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, Hubei Province; and Macheng Fubai chrysanthemum, submitted by the Fubai Chrysanthemum Industry Association of Macheng City, Huanggang, Hubei Province.
By the end of 2021, there were 3,510 geographical indications of agricultural products nationwide, of which 239 were for tea.
Why “merge the three marks into one”?
China began protecting geographical indications in 1999, and a three-way structure took shape among the former AQSIQ (General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine), the former SAIC (State Administration for Industry and Commerce)—whose geographical indication functions have since been transferred to the National Intellectual Property Administration—and the former Ministry of Agriculture (now the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs). The corresponding indications were: Product of Geographical Indication (PGI), Geographical Indication trademark (GI), and Geographical Indication of Agricultural Products (AGI).
Comparison of the “three marks.” Table by Liang Yan
With the restructuring of state administrative bodies, the origin geographical indication management functions of the former AQSIQ were merged into the National Intellectual Property Administration. On December 3, 2019, the Administration officially issued the Special Geographical Indication Mark of the People’s Republic of China—an important step in further standardizing the use of special geographical indication marks.
The special mark is the official mark established by the National Intellectual Property Administration to indicate that the geographical indication of a product bearing the mark has been registered and approved by the Administration. Under the Trademark Law, Patent Law and other relevant provisions of the PRC, the Administration registers and files the special mark and includes it under official mark protection.
In April 2020, the Administration issued the Measures for the Administration of the Use of Special Geographical Indication Marks (Trial), marking the unification of China’s special geographical indication marks and laying an important foundation for a protection model under a unified geographical indication recognition system.
From January 1, 2021, the new national special geographical indication mark came into use, and all three former marks were abolished.
The national special geographical indication mark
Thus the era of “three marks in parallel” became history. The National Intellectual Property Administration is responsible for uniformly formulating and issuing the requirements for using the special mark and for supervising and managing its use; local intellectual property departments handle day-to-day supervision at the local level.
In February 2021, the General Office of the Administration issued the Measures for the Construction and Administration of National Geographical Indication Product Protection Demonstration Zones (Trial).
To date there are 2,245 national geographical indication products, of which tea occupies nearly 300.
What does a national geographical indication mean for tea?
A national geographical indication can be called tea’s best identity document.
For producers, tea bearing a national geographical indication must be grown within the protected area. Producers must follow strict production rules, and the quality of the tea is subject to government review and must meet the standard for the geographical indication product. In return, producers share in the collective fame of the national geographical indication, raising the tea’s influence and economic value-added in the domestic market and its competitiveness in international markets.
For tea region governments, implementing the national geographical indication protection system has played an important role in driving local specialty industries and promoting rural revitalization. It requires strict supervision of every step of production, which also lets tea region governments grasp production and market conditions at the first moment and strengthens close ties between local government and producers.
Consumers can buy tea with greater confidence. Image: Gongxiao Fucha Group
For consumers, a national geographical indication signifies the tea’s reputation and worth.
More importantly, products under national geographical indication protection may be recommended by the state for mutual recognition of geographical indications with other countries or regions, helping open international markets. Under the China-EU Geographical Indications Agreement, in force since March 2021, 59 Chinese tea GI products are protected by the agreement.
Produced by: China Cooperation Times · Tea Weekly All Media
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Author: Lam Sam (LamSam), the Old Tea Head
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