On the 29th June 2009 the Melton Mowbray Pork Pie was awarded a PGI – a Protected Geographical Indication. This means no one outside the protected area of the town of Melton Mowbray and its surrounding region (as set out in the application), will be able to make use of the name in any way. This includes retailers as well as farmer markets traders. From now on, only an original Melton Mowbray pork pie can be called so. This is enormous protection for a traditional British product and secures the future for the 9 bakers involved in this application.

The beauty of the EU Protected Food Name scheme is that is it not exclusive; this logo is not a trade mark.  Consequently if others now wish to make the pork pie according to the Melton Mowbray recipe, and do business within the geographical area, then they too will be able to make use of the PGI and the protection is offers. This logo is a food standard, a symbol which equates to traceability, heritage and tradition.

Other applications that we should keep an eye out for as they come up for EU protection include Traditional Cumberland Sausage, Fal Oyster, Cornish Pasty and Welsh Cider and Perry. We continue to celebrate British traditional foods while seeking to protect their production for the future.