Sakpatenti has Granted the Status of Geographical Indication to “Georgian Highland Traditional Beer”

The National Intellectual Property Center of Georgia – “Sakpatenti”, on the basis of the application of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia, has registered “Georgian Highland Traditional Beer” as a geographical indication.

Georgian Highland Traditional Beer is an aromatic alcoholic beverage with low alcohol content, the traditions of production of which have existed in Georgia since ancient times. The production zone of Georgian Highland Traditional Beer includes eastern Georgia, namely the mountains of Tusheti, Pshav-Khevsureti and Tskhinvali regions (the territories of the former South Ossetian Autonomous District). Thus, according to the place of production, the following names are used for the beer: “Tushetian beer”, “Pshav-Khevsuretian beer” and “Ossetian beer”. They are produced by similar traditional beer brewing methods using barley, hops, water and yeast (For more information on the specification of Georgian Highland Traditional Beer see the link: https://www.sakpatenti.gov.ge/ka/state_registry/# )

Registration of geographical indications and appellations of origin in Georgia is the responsibility of Sakpatenti. These statuses are granted to special Georgian products. Geographical indications and appellations of origin inform consumers about the origin of a specific product and the unique characteristics attributable to its place of origin, the environmental conditions existing there and the traditional knowledge of production disseminated among the local population, which ultimately defines the distinctiveness and uniqueness of each such product.

At present, 39 appellations of origin and 31 geographical indications are registered in Georgia, including Georgian Highland Traditional Beer. Granting of the status of a geographical indication and an appellation of origin ensures protection and competitiveness of products on local and international markets, which creates a solid foundation for the agricultural and, in general, economic development of the country.

In the near future, on the basis of the Lisbon Agreement for the Protection of Appellations of Origin and their International Registration, the relevant database will be updated in the Lisbon Treaty Registry, administered by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Sakpatenti will also carry out appropriate measures to protect new geographical indications and, in order to extend international protection to new products, will apply to the European Union for the renewal of the list of geographical indications provided for by relevant annexes to the “Association Agreement between the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community and their Member States, of the one part, and Georgia, of the other part”. It will also appeal to the Swiss Confederation, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine to renew the lists of geographical indications covered by the existing agreements on mutual recognition and protection of geographical indications.