Spain’s meat industry has called on Madrid to pursue an application to the EU to have jamón serrano given protected geographical indication (PGI) status.
Confecarne, the Confederation of Spanish Meat Organisations, and the FJSE, the Spanish Serrano Ham Foundation, want the greater protection PGI status would bring. Their move follows widespread concern in the industry over products falsely labelled as serrano ham in foreign markets.
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José Ramón Godoy, manager of the FJSE, said the plan “is very important for Spanish ham makers”. He said PGI status would prevent non-Spanish ham makers in other EU member states from selling their product as jamón serrano. It would also help jamón serrano companies fight against the use of the name in non-EU countries.
PGI restrictions are recognised in some bilateral agreements between the EU and countries outside the union. “The ham is genuinely Spanish and so should be recognised and protected by a PGI,” Godoy said.
