INDEPENDENT NEWS

Cablegate: Ottawa Outreach Event On Geographical Indications

Published: Tue 18 Oct 2005 02:02 PM
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
181455Z Oct 05
UNCLAS OTTAWA 003114
SIPDIS
STATE PASS TO USPTO FOR D. LASHLEY-JOHNSON AND AMY COTTON;
STATE PASS TO USTR FOR DANIEL MULLANEY;
STATE PASS TO USDA FOR FAS/ITP/MTND/JOANHURST
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KIPR EAGR ECON ETRD WTO
SUBJECT: OTTAWA OUTREACH EVENT ON GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
AND WTO
REF: SECSTATE 180474
1. Summary: Embassy Ottawa's October 14th outreach event on
WTO and Geographical Indications (GI) was hosted by FAS and
Econ and attended by officials from International Trade
Canada, Agriculture and Agri-Foods Canada, Industry Canada,
and the Canadian Intellectual Property Office. The Canadian
attendees emphasized that the USG and GOC are "on the same
page and on the same side" on the subject of GIs, and a
number of attendees mentioned ongoing close cooperation with
USG officials in Washington. Comments on the Canadian
response to the content of the DVD and talking points are
provided in paragraph 2. The informational DVD was
well-received, with attendees offering specific comments
listed in paragraph 3.
2. GOC attendees could think of no major differences between
the Canadian and U.S. views on the GI issue, restating the
GOC position of being opposed to clawback and opposed to
inclusion of GIs in WTO Agriculture Negotiations in general.
They stated that they see little international support for
the EU position on clawback, but that they do think some
developing countries view extension as "their type of
clawback", sometimes based on only one product. They suggest
that there is room to influence world opinion if Canada and
the United States can show developing countries that our
system will work for them: the discussion of collective marks
on the DVD was seen as one effective example. Both
Agriculture and International Trade officials mentioned that
the potential costs of GIs, as highlighted by the Grocery
Manufacturers Association spokeswoman on the DVD, could be a
particularly useful point in outreach to developing nations,
as it provides context to the EU's emphasis on GI's benefits.
One Agriculture official suggested that specific examples of
potential repackaging and rebranding costs for developing
countries' manufacturers would be especially useful.
3. The GOC officials were impressed with the DVD and thought
it hit the right level of technicality for most of the world
audience. They did suggest, however, that a slightly more
technical version (going into the finer points of the
registry system for wine and spirits, for example) might be
useful for some audiences. The DVD also received compliments
on its structure, with one official stating that the "three
myths" approach was particularly useful because those myths
are what they hear all the time in attacks on the U.S. and
Canadian stance on GIs.
4. Finally, the GOC officials gave a brief rundown of world
players' campaigns on GIs, stating that Australia is working
hard to get its message across and describing how the EU is
offering workshops throughout SE Asia to promote its position
on GIs. An Agriculture and Agri-Foods official suggested
that it might be useful for Canada and the United States to
work together to gain international support, possibly by
organizing similar workshops for local businesses and
officials.
5. ACTION REQUEST: We have offered to provide the talking
points in French to GOC officials as soon as they are
available from Washington. Please send them to Elizabeth
Mader, madere@state.gov.
Visit Canada's Classified Web Site at
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/wha/ottawa
WILKINS
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