Champagne the First GI to be officially protected in Myanmar
30 April 2013
Rouse has assisted the Comité Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne (CIVC) in successfully recording the first geographical indication for ‘champagne’ in Myanmar under the recordation procedure with the Registry of Deeds and Assurance. The certificate was issued on January 2013 under registration number IV/13428/2012, making ‘Champagne’ the first geographical indication to gain official protection in that country.
This is one of many firsts for the CIVC in ASEAN countries, according to Rouse lawyers. ‘Champagne’ has also been the first European geographical indication registered in Thailand and Indonesia and was the second in Malaysia.
Myanmar’s Ministry for Science and Technology of Myanmar has been working on the first comprehensive draft Trade Mark Law which includes provisions on the protection of geographical indications. The draft law provides a mechanism for the registration of geographical indications, Rouse lawyers say. Geographical indications eligible for protection include both local and foreign geographical indications covering not only agricultural products but also handicrafts.
The draft law should be approved by the Parliament in the coming months and could enter into force in July 2013. Until then, geographical indications can be protected on the basis of their prior use in Myanmar, which is difficult, due to the informal distribution channels for most imported products in that country, or recordation with the Registry of Deeds and Assurance, the firm said in a statement.
Myanmar has been producing wines since the 1950s. Currently, there are two major wine producers, both located in the Southern Shan States near the Inle Lake: Red Mountain Estate and Myanmar Vineyard.
Cheers! Rouse has assisted the Comité Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne (CIVC) in successfully recording the first geographical indication for ‘champagne’ in Myanmar.
