The GI tag gives a country the right to market a produce as exclusively grown within its borders in certain specific regions.

By Subramani Ra Mancombu

Last week, Australia and the European Union (EU) signed a free trade agreement (FTA) after 8 long years of negotiations. A feature of the deal is that it has combined all aspects, including geographical indiction (GI) tag, into the deal.

Analysts and experts said the India-EU FTA is contrary because it addresses these aspects separately. They feel it is not too late, even now, as during the talks on GI, India must insist on getting recognition for its basmati rice and Darjeeling tea. 

The GI tag gives a country the right to market a produce as exclusively grown within its borders in certain specific regions.

Just as India is claiming GI tag for its basmati rice and Darjeeling tea, the European Union is seeking similar treatment for its wines, spirits and cheese.

In its FTA deal with Australia, the EU has won a major concession that requires Canberra to introduce a GI protection system for spirits and agricultural goods. During the lead-up to the deal, the GI protection saw both sides in disagreement. 

Sops for Aussies

Per the deal, Australia will have to protect 231 spirit GIs and 165 agricultural goods GIs, primarily dairy and small goods.  

However, Australia has got concessions from the EU, which allows it to use names for certain products until they are phased out over a period of 10 years. 

One of the features of this is that Australia will recognise Prosecco, an Italian wine, as a GI for the first time. Prosecco will be recognised as a grape variety in the Australian market, and producers can label their wine as Prosecco. However, for exports, Canberra gets a 10-year time to phase it out.  

S Chandrsekaran, author of “Basmati Rice: The Natural History Geographical Indication”, said the EU actively prevents the genericisation of a product before registration of a GI. Among various trade groups, the EU is sensitive to protecting GI, particularly its spirits, wines and cheese.

EU dragging its feet

An analyst, who did not wish to be identified, said the EU stands to gain more from an agreement on GI than India, which currently as only two products to show. 

“India should have insisted on including GI in the trade deal. Probably, it could have insisted on giving a phase-out time of 10 years for basmati rice from Pakistan,” he said. 

A trade expert said that if India had got such a deal, it could have helped in getting GI recognition in other countries. Currently, the EU has been dragging its feet to provide a GI tag to Indian basmati rice since 2018.

On the other hand, Australia, New Zealand and Kenya have refused to give GI to India’s claim for GI status because it was also grown in Pakistan. 

Warning sign

Chandrasekaran said the basmati rice origin story must be kept geographically tight and politically coherent. “Australia is the clearest warning sign. APEDA’s basmati certification-mark application was rejected because the rice was found not capable of distinguishing APEDA-certified rice from other rice goods,” he said.

He said the GI outcome in the 2026 Australia-EU-FTA deal shows that Australia prefers coexistence, grandfathering, and tailored carve-outs where market usage is entrenched. 

“The EU is where the acceptance of India’s legal definition of basmati matters most in this situation on exclusivity,” the basmati historian said. 

The analyst said India’s approach to GI has been akin to that of the US, which provides the least protection for GI products. However, the EU’s doctrine of GI protection is too broad. This could put pressure on Indian whiskeys and wines once the GI part of the FTA becomes operational.

Politically contested

Chandrasekaran wondered why the EU is hesitating to provide recognition of basmati rice from India.  

“Basmati is politically contested within the EU, with some supporting India and some Pakistan. EU’s GI enforcement is driven by internal legal certainty and commercial clarity, not origin purity. If India gains basmati GI in the EU, it will ensure protection in other markets,” he said.

On the other hand, the commercial market treats the Alphonso mango as a generic one, while GI protection links it to specific districts in Maharashtra. Also, Indian companies sell cheese such as Feta, Gouda, and Parmesan. 

They have a 12 per cent market share, valued at ₹1,250 crore of products that are considered “fake” by the EU, said the trade expert.

The trade analyst wondered why India has not tried to market its other GI products, such as Kolhapur slippers, Lakadong turmeric or Kovilpatti peanut candies. “It could be one reason why India has not combined GI tag negotiations as part of the FTA,” he said.

Published Date: March 30, 2026