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ABSTRACT
Today, agriculture and agri-food are at the heart of the changes affecting contemporary economies with the tension between globalization and return to the territories. Consequently the food industry provides a good illustration of the opposition and the coexistence of two current models of development, with intensive agriculture on the one hand, and the production of quality and specificity based on the labels of origin on the other. In North America and Quebec, the interest for geographical indications is recent. Also, in recent years there has been in Quebec a growing interest in food products focusing on differentiation through quality. In 2009 the Québec Winegrowers Association (QWA) set up the certification ‘Québec Certified Wines’ to structure the wine sector. In 2013, the same association has begun a process of recognition of a protected geographical indication (PGI) for Quebec's ice wine. Thus, the aim of this paper is to analyze the relationship between the development of these labels and the territory, in particular through the concept of terroir and the stakeholders’ collective action.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
Notes
1. Terroir is a French term with no exact English counterpart.
2. According to Article 22.1 of TRIPS, Geographical indications are: ‘indications which identify a good as originating in the territory of a Member, or a region or locality in that territory, where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of the good is essentially attributable to its geographical origin'.
3. Until the beginning of 2014, the CARTV received requests for the recognition of five products classified into two types. In the first place, there were demands related to a territory, with three products: the sweet Corn of Neuville, the Ice wine of Quebec and the Ice Cider of Quebec. Secondly, there were demands for names related to a specificity, with two products: Poultry Chantecler and the Canadian Cow cheese (http://www.cartv.gouv.qc.ca) (Accessed 21 June 2014).
4. Here we should mention the resemblance of these definitions with the European ones. According to the European Union, PGI is a name identifying a product: (a) originating in a specific place, region or country; (b) whose given quality, reputation or other characteristic is essentially attributable to its geographical origin; and (c) whose at least one of the production steps take place in the defined geographical area (Article 5(1) of Regulation 1151/2012.). PDO is a name identifying a product: (a) originating in a specific place, region or, in exceptional cases, a country; (b) whose quality or characteristics are essentially or exclusively due to a particular geographical environment with its inherent natural and human factors; (c) the production steps of which all take place in the defined geographical area (Article 5(2) of Regulation 1151/2012).
5. For the CARTV, the concept of terroir refers in particular to a denomination of registered origin (PDO) and protected geographical indication (PGI), designations which mean the product has characteristics related to its region (terroir). The other categories of designation, even if they are sometimes perceived as local products, do not refer to a geographical specificity but to a tradition, a production method or mode of production. Organic products, for example, are not considered as local products per se. They put forward another feature, namely a mode of production which is more environmentally friendly (http://www.cartv.gouv.qc.ca; Accessed June 20, 2014).
6. The Société des alcools du Québec (SAQ) is a government-owned corporation responsible for the trade of alcoholic beverages within the province of Quebec. The Quebec government created the Quebec Liquor Commission in 1921; in 1961 it became the Liquor Control Board of Quebec, and in 1971, the SAQ. Today, the SAQ is a monopoly that runs the liquor trade in Quebec. This monopoly role is challenged and many call for the liberalization of the distribution of alcohol in Quebec and even the privatization of the SAQ (Laurin, Citation2009).
7. In 1996, the Quebec government passed the Act respecting reserved designations, based on the regulations of the European Commission, for the recognition of Denominations of Origin (AO) and Protected Geographical Indication (PGI). This law aims to protect the authenticity of products and the denominations that emphasize the reference to their origin or their special characteristics associated with a production or a specific certification. In 2006, the Quebec government set up the Council of reserved denominations and valued terms (CARTV-Conseil des appellations reserves et des termes valorisants).
8. http://www.vqaontario.ca/Wines/Icewine (Accessed June 9th 2014).
9. http://www.gazette.gc.ca/rp-pr/p1/2013/2013-06-15/html/reg2-fra.html (Accessed June 9th 2014).
10. http://www.vindeglace.com/article31.pdf (Accessed June 9th 2014).
11. The wine industry in Canada must comply with numerous federal regulations: Canada Agricultural Products Act (CAP Act), Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, Food and Drugs Act, etc.; and international agreements: The North American Free Trade Agreement or NAFTA (1994), The multi-lateral Mutual Acceptance Agreement (2001), the Canada EU Wine and Spirits Agreement (2004), World Wine Trade Group (WWTG) Labelling Agreement (2007), etc. For the ice wine, the most important regulations are the Icewine Regulation (2014) at the federal level, and the Agreement on Requirements for Wine Labeling (2007) at the international level. (http://www.canadianvintners.com) (Accessed 8 July 2015).
12. http://www.agr.gc.ca/fra/industrie-marches-et-commerce/politiques-commerciales agroalimentaires/sujets/commerce-international-du-vin/?id=1384370757662 (Accessed June 9th 2014).
13. http://www.macleans.ca/society/life/they-are-picking-on-quebec/ (Accessed June 12th 2014).
14. http://www.marketwired.com/press-release/winemakers-reject-quebec-icewine-standard-1995608.htm (Accessed 7 July 2015).
15. http://www.vignobledelabauge.ca (Accessed 12 June 2014).
16. Idem.
17. http://www.conseiltac.com/ctac/nouvelles/12-fevrier-2014-vin-de-glace.html (Accessed 12 June 2014).
18. http://www.cartv.gouv.qc.ca/en/about-us (Accessed 12 June 2014).
19. http://www.conseiltac.com/ctac/nouvelles/le-vin-de-glace-du-quebec-en-route-pour-une-appellation-reservee.html (Accessed 12 June 2014).
20. http://www.magazineforces.com/economie/lindustrie-du-vin-quebecois (Accessed 12 June 2014).
21. http://www.marketwired.com/press-release/winemakers-reject-quebec-icewine-standard-1995608.htm (Accessed 7 July 2015).
22. https://www.saq.com (Accessed 12 June 2014).