The Consortium for the protection of Prosciutto di Parma PDO has achieved two pivotal legal outcomes in foreign markets, bolstering the international protection of the Prosciutto di Parma PDO designation. The successes—in Malta and Brazil—highlight the Consortium’s ongoing enforcement efforts, sustained for more than six decades.
In Malta, the Consortium uncovered “serious irregularities” involving pre-sliced ham marketed as Prosciutto di Parma. Local facilities had been packaging the product improperly, using the PDO name without complying with the strict requirements of the official production specifications. Under the PDO rules, pre-sliced Prosciutto di Parma may only be processed in authorized plants located within the Parma production area and placed under the supervision of the designated control body.
A swift intervention by the Consortium’s legal team, supported by Italy’s Central Inspectorate for Quality Protection and Fraud Repression of Agri-food Products (ICQRF), led to full remediation. All parties involved issued written commitments to cease the improper practices, and the Consortium secured a significant financial settlement for damages incurred.
The Consortium also reported a landmark decision in Brazil, a market described as “one of the most complex” for Prosciutto di Parma protection. The ongoing processes to secure PDO recognition and trademark registration remain unresolved, necessitating what the Consortium called “intensive safeguarding activity.”
At the center of the Brazilian case were trademark applications containing references to the word “Parma.” One approved filing by a well-known local company sought to register the term “PARMAN” for meat-based products. According to the Consortium, the company was not only using PARMAN, considered clearly evocative, but also the name “PARMA” itself. Legal counsel for the Consortium initiated immediate action, winning a first-instance ruling described as “far from guaranteed.” The judgment awarded substantial damages and secured the company’s commitment to withdraw its registrations and refrain from filing similar applications in the future.
“The recent results obtained in protecting our PDO are a source of great satisfaction for us and are also the result of close and productive collaboration with the competent national authorities, in particular the ICQRF, which acted immediately to stop the unauthorized use of the name ‘Prosciutto di Parma,’” said Stefano Fanti, Director of the Consortium.
Consortium President Alessandro Utini praised both outcomes: “We welcome with great satisfaction the positive outcome of these legal cases.”
Utini emphasized the strategic value of the EU-Mercosur agreement for the renowned PDO cold cut: “The entry into force of the agreement would represent a crucial step to strengthen the protection of our product in the Brazilian market. It provides, in fact, full and unconditional protection of Prosciutto di Parma.” He also highlighted the commercial implications: “In Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay it will be effective upon entry into force of the agreement, while in Brazil it will become fully effective seven years after ratification, making it impossible to continue using denominations such as ‘Presunto tipo Parma’ or similar, which are currently widespread and detrimental to the PDO’s development in the Brazilian market. Benefits will also be seen in terms of tariffs, as the customs duties currently applied to hams will be gradually eliminated in the years following the agreement’s entry into force.”