[Commons-Law] 'Goa’s Kaju Feni in the process of getting patent' (GI)

[Prashant Iyengar]

*http://www.indianexpress.com/printerFriendly/258481.html
*

*Goa's Kaju Feni in the process of getting patent*

**

Raju Nayak

*Posted online: Monday, January 07, 2008 at 0000 hrs IST *

PANAJI, JANUARY 6
The efforts of Goa-based Feni Producers' Association and the state
Government to get patent rights for the famed Kaju Feni seems to be finally
bearing fruit. A team of officials from the Geographical Indications
Registry, Chennai, visited various distillaries in the state last week and
met people engaged in the process.

Goa is the only place in the world where feni (liqour) is made from the
juice of cashew apple. Though the process was introduced to Goa some 450
years ago by the Portuguese rulers, today nowhere in Portugal or in its
former colonies liquor is extracted from Kaju fruit. In fact, Goa today has
a roaring business of feni with more than 2,000 distillation outlets and a
handful of modern factories working overtime. According to Gurudatt Bhakta,
president of Feni Producers Association, the distillation is done in the
most modern way in factories. Claiming that the Association was proud about
the quality of the product, he said: "We can easily export it, provided we
get patent for it which will automatically make it a standard quality
product."

"We have satisfied the experts from the GIR and their queries were
answered," said Bhakta. The bottling, preservation, blending and maturity of
feni were also discussed. The Goa Government's Science and Technology
department also presented the case as a unique geographical product
pertaining to the region with unique characterisation to country and the
world.

Michael D'Souza, an official from the Science and Technology department told
The Indian Express that they were quite satisfied with the presentations.
The Government expects certification by first week of May. "The Committee
has asked us to submit more information on the product and then they plan to
publish the information in the 'World Trademark' journal inviting
objections. Then, after a period of 120 days, the actual certification is
given," he informed.

The certification will protect the interest of small horticulturists and
feni producers of the state, officials said. In fact, any GIR certification
prevents the Indian geographical indications from becoming generic and
thereby not eligible for protection under the TRIPs Agreement of 1994.
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