“Gower Salt Marsh Lamb” has been approved as a new geographical indication from the UK by the European Commission today (Thursday, July 27).
The prime lamb that is born, reared and slaughtered on the Gower Peninsula in south Wales has been added as a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) from the UK.
The vegetation and environment of the salt marshes on the north Gower coastline, where the lambs graze, gives the Gower Salt Marsh Lamb its “distinctive characteristics”, the commission said.
The new geographical indication from the UK, Gower Salt Marsh Lamb, will be added to the list of 1,643 agricultural products already protected in the EU.
Geographical indication
Geographical indications – PDOs and protected geographical indications (PGI) – protect the name of a product that comes from a specific region and follows a particular traditional production process.
For PDOs, the raw ingredients need to come from the region of origin where all steps of production need to take place. As for PGIs, at least one of the stages of production, processing or preparation takes place in the region.
In the UK, there are already 27 PDOs, including Welsh Laverbread, Isle of Man Queenies, and Swaledale cheese. The 42 PGIs in the UK include London Cure Smoked Salmon, Whitstable oysters, and Scotch Beef.
All names of agricultural products and foodstuffs, wine, and spirit drinks that are protected across the EU are registered on eAmbrosia.
The legal register provides direct access to information on all registered geographical indications, including the legal instruments of protection and product specifications.