Food safety and quality
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Project title

Support to specific quality schemes

(GCP/INT/022/FR)

Photo from geographic intications project ~  © FAO / Emilie Vandecandelaere

Background and objectives

Specific quality schemes and voluntary standards can represent tools for contributing to food security, by providing better income to producers and by contribution to the preservation and promotion of some specific assets according to their main thrusts (environmental, social or cultural dimensions). These approaches are quite recent and there is need for sharing experiences among Member countries, identifying best practices and providing with guidance tools. In particular, issues related to origin-linked quality and geographical indications (GIs) are becoming increasingly important for member countries to protect GI as requesting by the TRIPs agreement of WTO and for preserving their food heritage.

The main objective is to assist member countries and stakeholders in implementing both local and institutional-level specific quality schemes that are appropriate to their economic, social and cultural contexts and contribute to rural development through the preservation and promotion of their specific assets and related resources.

Strategy and activities

The strategy is based on the collection and analysis of information on member countries experiences to provide guidance tools, and on the contribution to the design and management of technical cooperation projects in the countries. With regard to the knowledge part, the following activities are implemented:

  • collection of information on the experience of member countries:
    • regional seminars, expert meetings, establishment of stakeholders’ networks
    • case studies with concrete examples, and analysis of advantages, constraints and success or failure factors
  • development of support tools (handbook "Linking People, Place and Products", guidelines etc.)
  • awareness raising and provision of information to stakeholders

With regard to the technical parts, various projects have been supported:

COUNTRY

DURATION

OBJECT

Morocco

2008-2010

Support to development and the implementation of a recognition system for specific quality signs and origin-based labels in Morocco.

Tunisia

2008-2010

Support to development and implementation of a control system for origin-based quality products

Tunisia

2008-2010

Elaboration of a national strategy: “promotion of a strategy for the valorization of quality products”

Morocco

2008-2011

Capacity-building of the local stakeholders to develop mountain quality products – Example of Saffron

Lebanon

2009

Development of a GI for the Labneh value-chain

Bhutan

2009-2010

Establishment of a national strategy for promotion and preservation of specific quality products: the case of Yak products

Chili, Argentina, Brazil, Equator, Costa Rica

2010-2012

Regional Technical Cooperation Project on origin-based and tradition-based quality of food products

Ukraine

Jan-Aug 2010

Assessment of GI potential and its realization in support of rural development

Croatia

2009 – ongoing

TCI project - Support to GI development (mandarina of Neretva and Baranya kulen)

Mali

2009- ongoing

Supporting producers’ organization for a better exploitation of productions in the circles of Bandiagara and Menaka

Guinea Bissau, Mali, Senegal Sierra Leone

2009- ongoing

Promoting origin-linked quality products in four African countries ( in collaboration with Slow Food)

Mexico

 2010

Assessment of specific and generic quality of Cotija cheese for specification and food safety

Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos 

Formulation

Support to the implementation of GIs

Outputs

  • Reports of 5 regional seminars and 5 technical consultation meetings
  • More than 19 case studies in Asia, Latina America, South-eastern Europe and the Mediterranean
  • Guidelines of GI implementation at local level
  • Training materials
  • Decision making guide on voluntary standards (in process)
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