PGI application process begins for Certified Irish Angus Beef
‘Certified Irish Angus Beef’ is the name given to meat derived from certified Angus/Angus cross cattle. Picture: Certified Irish Angus Producer Group
The application process for a Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) for ‘Certified Irish Angus Beef’ has been launched.
The Department of Agriculture has launched a national opposition procedure on the application to register the product as a PGI.
A national opposition procedure is a stage in the application process for a PGI which must be undertaken before the application can be formally submitted to the European Commission.
A PGI is a name that identifies a product originating in a specific place, region, or country and whose given quality, reputation, or other characteristic is essentially attributable to its defined area of origin.
The applicant for this PGI is the Certified Irish Angus Beef Producer Group and the geographical area included in the application is the island of Ireland.
‘Certified Irish Angus Beef’ is the name given to meat derived from certified Angus / Angus cross cattle.
Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue said that a “significant amount of work has been undertaken to date” by the producer group.
The application for a national opposition procedure follows scrutiny by the Department of Agriculture and the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, in accordance with EU requirements.
The application is separate from the all-island Irish Grass Fed Beef PGI application, the registration process for which is almost complete by the European Commission.
The opposition procedure provides the opportunity for someone in Ireland with a legitimate interest to lodge an opposition to the applications.
Minister McConalogue said he is “particularly pleased about the all-island basis of this application”.
Ireland has eight registered PDO/PGI food product names, and these include Timoleague Brown Pudding (PGI), Connemara Hill Lamb (PGI), and Waterford Blaa (PGI).
The PGI application for Irish Grass Fed Beef underwent this national opposition period in 2020, and has recently completed a third country and member state opposition at EU level.
This application has now completed all stages of scrutiny, and registration is expected to be finalised in the coming weeks.
