Peru is the second country in Latin America with the highest number of appellations of origin

The National Institute for the defense of Competition and Protection of Intellectual Property (Indecopi for its acronym in spanish) pointed out that Peru is the second country in Latin America with the highest number of apellations of origin, only surpassed by Mexico that counts with 13 apellations.

An appellation of origin is used to identify products in the market with special characteristics due to the production zone and extraction or elaboration methods used by the producers of the place.

Some of the appellations of origin in Peru are Pisco, White Giant Corn Cusco, Pallar de Inca, Chulucanas, Villa Rica Cofee, Loche from Lambayeque, Machu Picchu Cofee, etc.

The director of the Distinctive Signs Commission of Indecopi, Patricia Gamboa, indicated that the projection of the country in quantitative terms in this subject is very wide due to the genetic variety of its products.

She manifests they believe that the biggest potential is located in the agricultural sector because of the amount of altitudinal floors and the microclimates and soils that Peru has and this is what permits each product to have singular characteristics.
She said that the appellations of origin are useful as a tool to improve the competition of the micro and small companies (called mypes) in agricultural and agro industrial activities and crafts.

The general Director of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Wang Binying, said that many countries are incorporating the appellations of origin in their economic policies due to the great social value they have, because they symbolize the communities that take part in the productive chain.

The World Symposium of Geographical Indications was held on the 22 of July 2011, organized by Indecopi, the WIPO and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MRE), with the participation of representatives of more than 100 countries.

Some of the topics of the event were the conditions to develop a brand image based on the geographical origin of products, the economical repercussion of appellations of origin and their effects in the rural development, the role of producers and the right to the use of appellations of origin.