Protecting Geographical Indications: Lessons learned from the Economic Literature

Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Producers' and Consumers' Expectations towards Geographical Indications - Empirical Evidence for Hessian Apple Wine

The number of products bearing a Geographical Indication (GI) has increased steadily in recent years. The EU Commission considers GIs as a useful tool in fostering simultaneously the production of high-quality food products as well as rural development in less-favoured regions. However, GIs are by no means a self runner. In order to be successful consumers have to value GIs. So far empirical evidence with respect to consumers' knowledge, expectations and WTP towards GI products is rather mixed and mainly focused on Mediterranean countries. The present paper addresses both sides of the market, i.e. producers' motivations to establish a GI and consumers' expectations towards GI products by representing results from a German case study, i.e. Hessian apple wine. In November 2008, an online-survey with 741 Hessian consumers was carried out. In the same month, an in-depth interview with one of the leading producers of Hessian apple wine, who was directly involved in the PGI application process, was conducted. The results indicate that the most important motivation to apply for a PGI is to secure the established reputation against misuse by competing producers in order to ensure the quality level of Hessian apple wine. Hessian consumers' awareness and knowledge about GIs is very limited. Moreover, it is found that the quality-dimension is not as important as the local-economy support dimension and perceived authenticity of the product.Geographical indications, German case study, cider, online survey, Agricultural and Food Policy,

Geographical Indications of Origin as a Tool of Product Differentiation : The Case of Coffee

An increasing interest in geographical indications of origin (GIs) as a tool of product differentiation can be observed in the so-called specialty coffee sector. Similar to the approach for wine in France and Italy, more and more coffee-producing countries try to establish appellations systems for coffee. Whereas some countries and regions such as Colombia or Jamaica have already legally protected GIs for coffee, most coffee GIs are still informal meaning that no legal protection has been obtained so far. But the recent acceptation of the term Café de Colombia as a Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) in the EU and the Ethiopian Trademark Initiative document the increasing engagement of coffee-producing countries to achieve an appropriate legal protection for their GIs. From an economic point of view, data from US online retail stores indicate that single-origin coffees receive significant higher retail prices, with 100% Kona coffee from Hawaii and Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee being the most expensive ones. Furthermore, results from a hedonic pricing model based on internet auction data for single-origin coffees show that the country and the region of origin is already an important determinant of prices paid by importers and roasters. --Geographical Indications of Origin,coffee,legal regulatory systems,price premium,hedonic pricing analysis

Geographical Indications of Origin as a Tool of Product Differentiation: The Case of Coffee

An increasing interest in geographical indications of origin (GIs) as a tool of product differentiation can be observed in the so-called specialty coffee sector. Similar to the approach for wine in France and Italy, more and more coffee-producing countries try to establish appellations systems for coffee. Whereas some countries and regions such as Colombia or Jamaica have already legally protected GIs for coffee, most coffee GIs are still informal meaning that no legal protection has been obtained so far. But the recent acceptation of the term Café de Colombia as a Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) in the EU and the Ethiopian Trademark Initiative document the increasing engagement of coffee-producing countries to achieve an appropriate legal protection for their GIs. From an economic point of view, data from US online retail stores indicate that single-origin coffees receive significant higher retail prices, with 100% Kona coffee from Hawaii and Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee being the most expensive ones. Furthermore, results from a hedonic pricing model based on internet auction data for single-origin coffees show that the country and the region of origin is already an important determinant of prices paid by importers and roasters.Geographical Indications of Origin, coffee, legal regulatory systems, price premium, hedonic pricing analysis, Marketing,

High resolution frequency analysis techniques with application to the redshift experiment

High resolution frequency analysis methods, with application to the gravitational probe redshift experiment, are discussed. For this experiment a resolution of .00001 Hz is required to measure a slowly varying, low frequency signal of approximately 1 Hz. Major building blocks include fast Fourier transform, discrete Fourier transform, Lagrange interpolation, golden section search, and adaptive matched filter technique. Accuracy, resolution, and computer effort of these methods are investigated, including test runs on an IBM 360/65 computer

Zur syntaktischen Struktur von 'freien Pradikativen' und 'Adverbialen der Art und Weise'

[I]n der folgenden Skizze [soll] argumentiert werden, dass eine Rückführung unterschiedlicher Lesarten auf unterschiedliche syntaktische Verhältnisse […] unangemessen ist. Vielmehr sol1 aufgezeigt werden, dass es sich um eine ausschließlich semantische Frage handelt, die syntaktische Struktur in jeder Hinsicht aber die immerselbe ist. […] Unser Gegenstandsbereich fasst somit Fälle zusammen, die unter anderen Gesichtspunkten differenziert werden. [...] Diese Gesichtspunkte, nach denen die Differenzierung erfolgt, sind semantischer Natur. Für unsere syntaktische Analyse nehmen wir in Anspruch, dass sie auf alle Adverbialstrukturen zutrifft, mit Ausnahme von Satzadverbialen und (den diesen strukturell gleichen) Adverbialsätzen. Gezeigt wird dies jedoch nur an Fallen wie oben, an Adjektiven in modaladverbialer Funktion. Diese Adjektive fassen wir im übrigen kategorial als das auf, was sie ihrer Form nach sind, nämlich unflektierte Adjektive

C.D.T.C.-A New Star on the Training Horizon

IF You want to know whether an idea will work, one of the surest ways to find out is to try it! That is exactly what the Southwestern Region of the U.S. Forest Service was doing when they established the Continental Divide Training Center. This is a pilot project to determine the feasibility of a permanent training center for Forest Service Employees, staffed by a group of trained, full-time instructors and the necessary clerical and maintenance force. It is the first and only training center of it\u27s kind in the United States. The facilities are maintained primarily to meet the training needs of Forest Service personnel in Region Three. This project has the blessing and backing of the Chief\u27s office. If it proves as effective as we hope to make it, it may serve as a model for the establishment of similar training centers in other Forest Service Regions across the country. Our activities are being scrutinized by administrators and training officers from other regions and units all over the United States. The results of our efforts last year, and so far this year have been very favorably received. The consensus seems to be that this is a very worthwhile and effective program. It will probably be maintained on a permanent basis, at least in this Region of the Forest Service