This article has been written by Manisha Kumari, a 2nd year student of CLC , University of Delhi
Abstract
Food is our identity, India, which has its own diverse cultures and culinary, and diverse flavors, boasts a diverse culinary tapestry as rich as its history. It is rightly said that the way to someone’s heart is through their stomach. From the fragrant Biryanis of Hyderabad to the spicy curries of Kerala, every region in India has its own unique culinary traditions. Amidst this culinary diversity, certain foods hold a special place, authenticity, and uniqueness in specific regions. To celebrate this diversity and protect the authenticity and uniqueness of regional traditional Indian food, the concept of geographical indication tags has gained prominence.
Introduction
Geographical Indication is an indicator of exclusivity that identifies a product or commodities as originating from a specific geographical region, ensuring its unique characteristics and qualities are preserved. It is not only protects the food but also helps in boosting the local economy and promoting tourism. GI regarded as a certification that has a particular reputation and specific qualities.
Geographical indications are used for wine and spirit drinks, foodstuffs. GIs are parts of intellectual property rights under the Paris Convention. At the International level, the agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) of the World Trade Organization provides minimum binding standards for Intellectual Property protection that are enforced under the WTO’s dispute settlement process. This agreement protects GIs.
Article 22(1) of TRIPS defines Geographical Indications as “indications which identify a good as originating in the territory of a Member, or a region or locality in that territory, where a given quality, reputation or another characteristic of the good is essentially attributable to its geographical origin.”
Article 22 of the TRIPS Agreement defines a standard level of protection that covers all products. GIs are to be protected to avoid misleading the public and prevent unfair competition.
Article 23 of TRIPS provides a higher or enhanced level of protection for GIs for wines and spirits: Subject to many exceptions – they have to be protected even if misuse would not cause the public to be misled.
Criteria for a Food Product to be Granted a GI Tag
To safeguard the food product which is originated in a specific location. It should also possess distinctive characteristic and reputation specific to the area should be present. Consumer of GI tagged food should ideally be able to identify it as being from the designated location and tell it distinct from other similar meals. In several legal framework one specific feature relating to the product’s place of origin whether it be its reputation or any other attribute is enough. The GI grants protection of the product which may be requested by a group of producer of the product. The producers of the products may be arrange into a entity such as cooperative or association, that serves as their representative and makes sure the product satisfies specifications that they have agreed upon or followed as needed. In certain jurisdictions, a capable national authority (such a local government authority) may also make a request for protection. On request a national (region) responsible authority, as the IP office, will provide protection for a GI.
If a geographical term is used as designation of a kind of product rather than an indication of the place of origin of that product, this term cease to be function as a GI.
Indian GI tagged food
India, being a treasure trove of culinary delights, has a vast number of food items that have been granted GI tags. One such well-known example, The GI tagged food item is the Alphonso mango, often referred to as the “king of Indian mangoes”. The Alphonso mango from Ratnagiri, Sidhudurg and adjoining areas in Maharashtra, had already acquired the GI tag October 3,2018 from the government. The Alphonso mango is renowned for its rich taste, vibrant color , and smooth texture. The GI tag ensures that consumers can trust authenticity of the Alphonso mangoes they purchase, as well as supporting the livelihoods of the local farmers.
The Bandar laddoo or thokkudu ladoo is the most well known sweet from the state of Andhra Pradesh .With its remarkably smooth and creamy texture, this laddoo is merely another variety of besan ke laddoo which is popularly known across the country. At least 250 families are engaged in the craft of making the laddoo. It takes six to seven laborious hours making ghee –laden balls of deliciousness. The key ingredients Bengal gram flour, jaggery syrup and ghee. Now, the production of laddoo was geographically limited to then Machillipatnam Taluk, which comprises areas including Pedana, Goduru and Nidumolu in Krishna district. The origin of this laddoo is from the Rajputs of Rajasthan. Locals have learnt the art of preparing the laddoo from Rajput families of Rajasthan, who had migrated Machillipatanam from Bundelkhand in Rajasthan after the 1857 sepoy mutiny. This laddoo got the GI tag in 2018 and is named after Bandar Port, where it was first made. This laddoo is also exported in U.S. , U.A.E, and EU.
Uttar Pradesh, has its own rich and diverse cuisine, in this state different district has different food culture. One of the district is Varanasi which is well-known for its the Banarasi Paan , it is made using special ingredient in a unique way. Along with the Banarasi Paan, three other Varanasi – best products– Banarasi Langda Mango, Ramnagar ka Bhanta(Brinjal), and Adamchini Rice also received the GI tag.
In list the of GI tags related to the food product of Bihar are Silao Khaja . The traditional delicacy of Nalanda district of Bihar gets GI tag in 2018 at Chennai. Khaja is multi layered, crispy sweet and conventional Bihari dessert. This Bihari dessert comprises around 15 layers of dough placed over one another. It has Wheat-flour, sugar, Maida, Ghee, Cardamom, and Aniseeds as its ingredients. It is deep fried until it turns crisp. The crisp croissants are then soaked in sugar syrup until they absorb the sugar syrup. There are also some more GI tagged food items which includes- Shahi Lichi, Katerni rice, Makhana, Marcha rice, Maghi paan, Jardalu mango.
In 2010, the crispy snack known as Bikaneri Bhujia of Rajasthan, which is recognized among Indians, was received recognized as a Geographical Indication. This specific variety of bhujia, which has been around since 1877, is made up of besan, spices, and moth beans. It has an unique pale yellow color and a strong flavor. This unique example of a very Indian food gets its name from the town where it originated, Bikaner, and is so popular that it transcends areas of integration to become a generic identity within itself.
In Tamil Nadu , has its own diverse cultures and traditions. In the list of GI tagged food items, Tamil Snack ‘Ooty Varkey’ and ‘Manapparai Murukku’ both are gets GI tag. These are the snack made out of thick dough of rice flour, urad dal , salt and spices, bite-sized snack gets its distinctive crunch due to its double-frying. ‘Manapparai Murukku’ are in great demand among Tamil diaspora, especially in southeast Asian Gulf Arab countries. Kovilpatti kadal mittai is also get GI tag in the list of food stuff. It is a sweetmeat which is prepared with palm jaggery and groundnuts formed as balls, the sweet’s shape in a rectangular form. This mithai gets its unique flavor from fresh, pale, organic, and distinctive Theni jaggery. The unique taste of this Tamil Nadu dish is enhanced by the use of water from the Thamirabarani river and regional variations of the primary ingredients.
Ratalam sev is a snack from Madhya Pradesh, it is great food delight in Indian culinary. This light-yellow ,crunchy sev is prepared by gramm flour and spices has interesting past .Ratlam sev was first commercially produced in the early 1900, was inspired by this “Bhildi sev”. In 2015 ,Ratlami sev received the title of GI.
In the eastern region of South Asia, a syrupy treat known as “syrup filled ball” or “Rashogulla” is a popular choice. It is created with chhena dough dumplings formed like balls that are baked in a light sugar syrup. Continue doing this until the dumplings are covered in syrup.
West Bengal Rasogolla: The spongy white rasogolla appears to have come to contemporary times West Bengal in 1868 by Nobin Chandra Das, a confectioner coming from Kolkata. Das started making rasogolla with the mixture of chhena and semolina in boiling sugar syrup.
Odisha Rasagola: According to historians of Odisha, Rasagola originated in Puri, as khira mohana, which later evolved into the Pahala rasagola. At the Jagannath Temple in Puri, it has been traditionally offered as bhog to the goddess Lakshmi. According to folklore, that there were a lot of cows in Pahala, a village outside of Bhubaneshwar, the capital of Odisha. The village would produce more milk than needed, and when it went bad, the residents would discard it. Upon observing this, a Jagannath Temple priest instructed them in the art of curdling, which included the recipe for rasagulla. Thus, Pahala developed into the region’s largest market for confections made with chhena.
Although it is almost commonly acknowledged that the dessert originated in the eastern Indian subcontinent, there is disagreement about the precise origins amongst regions like West Bengal, Bangladesh, and Puri Jagannath Temple in Odisha. When West Bengal was granted geographical indication (GI) status for Banglar rosogolla in 2017, the Registry Office of India clarified that West Bengal was granted GI status for Banglar rosogolla, and Odisha can claim it as well if they cite the place of origin of their variant, as well as the color, texture, taste, juice content, and method of manufacturing. Odisha’s government was granted GI status for “Odisha rasagola” (Odia rasagola) in 2019.
Case: Banglar Rasogolla v. Odisha Rasagola, In November 2017, West Bengal State Food Processing and Horticulture Development Company Limited registered its GI as Banglar Rasogola. It is being reported that Bengal has won the potential war between Odisha and Bengal, which is said to have a famous dessert. The legal battle for GI registration began when there was opposition to the GI inscription and it was said that this famous dessert originated from the Jagannath temple in Puri, Odisha. The application to deregister GI status was filed in February 2018. Meanwhile, In July, the GI registrar announced that Odisha had registered as the G.I. under the name “Odisha Rasgola”, later several reports were published. Odisha did not give up but won. It is very important to note that the Register of G.I. do not record the entire word Rasogola/Rasgola’. It has a two-word prefix reserved for the G.I. tag, one is ‘Banglar’ and the other is ‘Odisha’. “Rasogola/ Rasgola” is a general term that anyone can use in their profession and business. Therefore, legally, no state has a monopoly on the word “Rasogola/Rasola”. Therefore, it is free to sell sweets to anyone under the name of Rasgulla/Rasgola or any other synonym. It is prohibited for anyone other than a legally authorized user to use the words “Odisha rasgola” and “Benglar rosogola”.
CONCLUSION:
The GI tags for these diverse food items not only protect their authenticity but also contribute to the cultural heritage and identity of the regions they come from. They create a sense of pride among the local communities and encourage them to continue. GI tags spread awareness to the consumers about the origin of food products in the contemporary world. It also demands genuine and high-quality food products in the marketplace. GI tags is differentiator that differentiate the original , specializes , and particular regional food products from other local marketplace.
References:
- Ruchika Garg, Celebrating culinary diversity of India, Hindustantimes.com, 2022
- Kritika Pushkarna, Celebrate Independence Day with these 15 GI tagged Indian foods , recipes.timesofindia.com, 2023
- Cscope Staff, GI Tagged Food Delicacies in India Saving the Native Flavors, caleidoscope.in, 2023
- Geographical Indications for Food Products, kashishipr.com, 2021
- Geographical Indication Tag Bihar, Bihar Bhawan, New Delhi
- Banarasi Paan among 4 Varanasi products get GI Tag, Hindustan
Times
- Nahla Nainar, It is crunch time for the Manapparai murukku as GI tag is set to make traditional snack go global, thehindu.com, 2023
- Rasgulla, en.m.wikipedia.org
- Shubhangi Sharma,Geographical Indications: know more about them,blog.ipleaders.in,2019