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European Union prod­ucts labeled with a geo­graph­i­cal indi­ca­tion are worth €74.76 bil­lion ($80.74 bil­lion), accord­ing to a recent study from the European Commission.

More than one-fifth of this value is derived from exports of prod­ucts with a Protected Geographical Indicator or a Protected Designation of Origin.

“European geo­graph­i­cal indi­ca­tions reflect the wealth and diver­sity of prod­ucts that our agri­cul­tural sec­tor has to offer,” Janusz Wojciechowski, the European agri­cul­ture com­mis­sioner, said. ​“By pro­tect­ing prod­ucts across the globe, we pre­vent fraud­u­lent use of prod­uct names and we pre­serve the good rep­u­ta­tion of European agri-food and drink products.”

Oils and fats account for roughly €555 mil­lion ($599 mil­lion) of the total value of geo­graph­i­cal indi­ca­tors, an increase of 59 per­cent from 2010. PDO prod­ucts, specif­i­cally, have con­tributed to 80 per­cent of the growth in value.

The dri­ving force for growth in the oil and fats cat­e­gory has been both PDO and PGI extra vir­gin olive oils.

“Olive oils are the largest sub­cat­e­gory of oils and fat prod­ucts under geo­graph­i­cal indi­ca­tors account­ing for 54 per­cent of the 2017 sales value and half of the growth,” the report says.

Overall, sales of PGI and PDO extra vir­gin olive oils have grown from €204 mil­lion ($221 mil­lion) in 2005 to €301 mil­lion ($326 mil­lion) in 2017. The entire oil and fats cat­e­gory grew from €259 mil­lion ($280 mil­lion) to €555 mil­lion, in the same time period.

Extra vir­gin olive oils with geo­graph­i­cal indi­ca­tors in Spain rep­re­sented 25 per­cent of the sales value and one-third of the growth. The country’s three largest PDO oils – Baena, Siurana and Sierra de Cazorla PDO – helped to lead the way.

Italian PDO and PGI oils made up another 14 per­cent of sales value and con­tributed to two per­cent of the growth. Terra di Bari PDO, Toscano PGI and Val di Mazara PGI, the three largest geo­graph­i­cal indi­ca­tors in the coun­try, also con­tributed sub­stan­tially to the growth.

A sep­a­rate report out of Italy found that the value of PGI and PDO oils has steadily risen to €144 mil­lion ($155 mil­lion) and exports have reached €62 mil­lion ($67 million).

However, even as European geo­graph­i­cal indi­ca­tors for olive oil have risen steadily in value, they have expe­ri­enced a sig­nif­i­cant decrease in their value pre­mium rate – the sales value of a prod­uct with a geo­graph­i­cal indi­ca­tor rel­a­tive to a com­pa­ra­ble stan­dard prod­uct with­out one.

“In 2010, olive oil was one of the prod­ucts with the high­est value pre­mium rates (1.83); in 2017, it reduced to 1.04,” the report said. ​“This change was caused by a reg­u­lar and impor­tant rise in the stan­dard prices of vir­gin olive oil.”

Overall, value pre­mium rates among European prod­ucts with geo­graph­i­cal indi­ca­tors have dropped from 2.14 to 2.07 since 2010.

In spite of this decrease in value pre­mium rates, Wojciechowski empha­sized that the geo­graph­i­cal indi­ca­tor scheme con­tin­ues to ben­e­fit producers.

“Producers’ ben­e­fits are clear. They can sell prod­ucts at a higher value, to con­sumers look­ing for authen­tic regional prod­ucts,” he said. ​“Geographical indi­ca­tors are a key aspect of our trade agree­ments. Geographical indi­ca­tions pro­tect local value at a global level.”

• European Commission