Australia-European Union Free Trade Agreement and what this means for GI protection in Australia

Australia and the European Union concluded negotiations on a historic free trade agreement on 24 March 2026, following eight years of extensive negotiations. One of the key obstacles to the signing of the Australian and European Union Free Trade Agreement (AEUFTA) was the European Union’s insistence that Australia provide geographical indication (GI) protection to the names of agricultural products and spirits that have been recognised domestically.

The compromise position reached allows Australian producers to continue to use some names that have been used as common descriptive names locally for generations, such as parmesan and kransky. The terms of the AEUFTA also significantly allows winemakers to continue to use the term prosecco domestically.  A limited number of other GI names, such as feta, romana, gruyere and ouzo, are subject to grandfathering and lengthy phase-out periods under the terms of the AEUFTA. Now that the AEUFTA has been signed, there is a strong incentive for Australia to adopt a formal expanded framework for the protection of GIs which extends beyond wines and grape products and provides stronger safeguards for other products, particularly agricultural products and spirits.

The objectives of GI protection, namely to protect the connection between a geographical area and characteristics of a product that are essentially attributable to its connection with that geographical area, are more likely to be achieved by introducing a dedicated GI framework rather than relying on alternative mechanisms which are not specifically designed to achieve this objective.

Background to the AEUFTA Negotiations

Negotiations relating to the AEUFTA faced persistent obstacles since they commenced in 2018, primarily relating to EU market access for Australian agricultural products, such as beef and dairy, and the EU requirement that its EU GIs be protected in Australia.

As part of the AEUFTA negotiations, the EU asked Australia to protect 236 spirit names and 172 agricultural and other foodstuff names as GIs in Australia[2].  The EU requested that these GI names be protected against:

1.      any direct or indirect commercial use of a GI name;

2.      any misuse, imitation or evocation, even if the true origin of the product is indicated;

3.      any other false or misleading indication as to the origin, nature or essential qualities of the product; and

4.      any other practice liable to mislead the consumer as to the true origin of the product.   

One of the most prominent controversial names that the EU sought GI protection for that Australian producers resisted was ‘feta’ cheese.  Many Australia cheesemakers use the term ‘feta’ generically to describe a type of salty white cheese, however if the initial EU proposal was accepted they would be prevented from not only using the term ‘feta’, but also ‘feta-style’ or ‘feta-like’. The AEUFTA that was eventually signed includes grandfathering and lengthy phase-out periods for a limited number of terms such as feta, romana, gruyere and ouzo.

The AEUFTA negotiations required the Australian government to balance competing interests, such as the cost to Australian businesses if they were required to rebrand to remove use of EU GI product names, the risk of potential revenue loss due to resulting damage to brand recognition and the administrative costs associated with protecting European GIs in Australia on the one hand and the benefits for Australian businesses if the EU allowed Australian products greater access into the EU market on the other hand.

EU Expansion of GI Protection to Craft and Industrial Products

Current mechanisms for Protecting GIs in Australia

In Australia, GIs are currently protected by two means[7]:

1.      There is a dedicated regulatory wine GI framework for wine and grape products[8]; and

2.    GIs for all other products are protected by trade mark laws[9], consumer protection laws[10] and passing off at common law.     

Australian Wine GI Framework

The Australian Wine GI framework protects the use of GIs on wine labels by requiring that at least 85 per cent of grapes used to produce the product originate from the region or locality in Australia that comprises the GI[11].  Unlike the European “Appellation” system, the Australian wine GI framework primarily regulates the origin of grapes, rather than specific production methods or grape varieties.

Certification trade marks, which are owned by certifying bodies, are used by authorised producers to indicate that their product has been certified by the certifying body in relation to quality or some other characteristic, including origin, material or mode of manufacture, and thereby distinguish the product from other products offered in the marketplace that are not certified[12].  The use of certification trade marks is governed by a set of rules[13], which must be approved by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC)[14].  Provided that the approved user complies with the rules, any trader may use a certification trade mark without the need to be affiliated with or connected to any particular association[15]. 

In contrast, collective trade marks are owned by an association and used by its members to distinguish their products from those products produced by persons who are not members of the association[15].  Usage of collective trade marks is governed by the rules prescribed by the association. In relation to GIs, geographic origin may form part of the collective identity and prescribed rules of the association members.  However, there is no statutory obligation placed on an association to impose or enforce standards relating to geographical origin or quality and therefore their effectiveness as a mechanism for protecting GIs is dependent upon the extent to which the association is diligent in imposing and enforcing standards.

The limitations resulting from reliance on trade mark laws, consumer protection laws and the common law tort of passing off to protect GIs for goods other than wine and grape products has led to many of Australia’s trading partners seeking to elevate the GI protection for its products through bilateral free trade agreements.

The AEUFTA will enter into force when both Australia and the European Union have completed the necessary domestic ratification processes.  The Australian government has provided assurances that it will consult on any draft legislation giving effect to its GI obligations under the AEUFTA once the negotiations have been finalised and a AEUFTA has been signed.

The signing of the AEUFTA provides a strong incentive to closely evaluate Australia’s current system for the protection of GIs and consider introducing a dedicated GI framework.  This would provide stronger protection for the connection between Australian food and beverages and the regional identity that comes from the geographical origin of products.  Further benefits of a dedicated GI framework include incentivising producers to invest in building a reputation in a registered GI and promoting the same by ensuring there are safeguards to prevent that reputation from being exploited as well as providing greater transparency to consumers as to the geographical origin of food and beverages that are labelled with a GI.  Time will tell whether Australia is prepared to adopt a dedicated GI framework, however the signing of the AEUFTA provides a strong incentive to do so.  Article references below.

[2] Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade ‘List of EU’s requested Geographical Indications’ 2020 (https://www.dfat.gov.au/trade/agreements/negotiations/aeufta/geographical-indications/list-of-eu-requested-geographic-indications-gis)

[3] Agreement between Australia and European Community on Trade in Wine 1994 and Australia – European Commission Agreement of Trade in Wine 2010. 

[4] Regulation (EU) 2023/2411 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 October 2023 on the Protection of Geographical Indications for Craft and Industrial Products

[5] Regulation 2024/1143 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 May 2024.

[6] For a comprehensive discussion on this topic, see Paula Zito, ‘Crafting identity: lessons for Australia from the European Union’s geographical indications framework – crafting culture, anchored in place’, Oxford Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice, 2026, Vol 00, No. 00.   

[7] Australia complies with its international obligation under the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Agreement 1994 (TRIPs Agreement) to provide GI protection by these means, with Article 22 of the TRIPS Agreement providing members with the discretion to determine the legal means appropriate to protect GIs within their country.

[8] The Australian wine GI framework is established pursuant to the Wine Australia Act 2013 (Cth), Wine Australia Regulations 2018 (Cth) and the Label Integrity Program and is regulated by Wine Australia.  

[9] Trade mark laws provide GI protection by registration of certification or collective trade marks under the Trade Marks Act 1995 (Cth)

[10] Consumer protection laws are governed by the Australian Consumer Law as set out in Schedule 2 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth)

[11] Regulation 26 of Wine Australia Regulations 2018 (Cth),

[12] Part 16, Section 169 of the Trade Marks Act 1995 (Cth)

[13] Section 173 of the Trade Marks Act 1995 (Cth)

[14] Section 175 of the Trade Marks Act 1995 (Cth)

[15] Section 172 of the Trade Marks Act 1995 (Cth)

[16] Section 162 of the Trade Marks Act 1995 (Cth)