Whisky, stilton and pork pies to be protected in post-Brexit food regulations
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The government today set out new legislation to guarantee the authenticity and origin of traditional British foods such as stilton, pork pies and Scotch whisky at the end of the Brexit transition period.
Negotiations between the UK and EU are still ongoing, with time running thin for a trade deal with the bloc before Britain officially exits the single market on 1 January.
However, the government today provided clarity on the future of Britain’s food industry, with a set of new and independent Geographical Indications (GI) schemes that will ensure traditional produce from across Britain will be granted special status post-Brexit.
Products such as Scotch whisky, Welsh lamb and Cornish clotted cream will also be recognised for their authenticity and origin under the new schemes.
The initiative will mimic established EU schemes that limit the use of certain food and drink labels to authentic products from specific regions, such as Champagne.
Producers whose foods are granted GI status will benefit from intellectual property protection and new logos in a bid to prevent others imitating them.
“The new UK protected food name scheme will replace the old EU one and will ensure that we continue to recognise and celebrate protected food names and local recipes across our country,” said environment secretary George Eustice.
It comes as Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set to resume Brexit talks with the EU today, after passing his provisional deadline of last Thursday to achieve “the outline of a deal”.
Brussels’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier will meet with British convoy David Frost with the hopes of reaching a compromise after a week-long standoff between the two sides.
Johnson’s official spokesman said this morning: “In terms of the timeframe, I think, what I would say is that time is now very short. We have been repeatedly clear that any agreement needs to be in place before the end of the transition period.”