The world's top food regulatory body has put off a discussion on integrating a recipe for Parmesan cheese into global food standards following strong objections from Italy and the EU, a spokesman said Thursday.
The process -- backed mainly by the United States and Latin American countries -- could have opened up use of the name for hard cheese produced around the world and not only in the eponymous Italian region.
A commission of the Codex Alimentarius, which is run jointly by the World Health Organisation and the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation, voted against continuing the debate by 30 to 21, effectively allowing the issue to age another year, WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl said.
Italy had argued that the English translation of "Parmigiano" was part of the protected name of a specific hard cheese from the northern Italian region, and was backed by other European Union states.
Other countries had also argued a decision would clash with ongoing talks in the World Trade Organisation over intellectual property rights on regional names of origin or geographical indications for produce, a source said.
The Codex already includes formulations for Brie, Emmenthal and Provolone cheeses, but discussions on other food names have also foundered amid strong opposition, Hartl said.Agence France Presse:
