Vale do São Francisco receives Geographical Indication recognition for wines from the region
Brazil has already registered 105 GIs, 32 of which are Designations of Origin and 73 Indications of Origin
04.11.2022 | 14:00 (UTC -3)
Mapa
Brazil has already registered 105 GIs, 32 of which are Denominations of Origin and 73 Indications of Origin; Photo: Disclosure
Known for its tropical wines, Vale do São Francisco received a Geographical Indication (GI) registration in the Indication of Origin (IP) modality for fine and noble wines, natural sparkling wines and sparkling muscatel. The registration was published in the Industrial Property Magazine (RPI) nº 2.704 of the National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI) last Tuesday (1/11).
The wine production area comprises five municipalities located in two states in the Northeast: Lagoa Grande, Petrolina and Santa Maria da Boa Vista, in Pernambuco; and Casa Nova and Curaçá, in Bahia.
“The official recognition of the Vale do São Francisco Indication of Origin for wines is the result of coordinated work between producers, universities and public research institutions. In order to enhance the value of a country's typical products, this coordination is essential, and the State's participation occurs with the aim of promoting rural and regional development of value chains”, said the head of the Geographical Indication Projects Division of the Ministry of Agriculture , Livestock and Supply (Map), Wellington Gomes.
In this GI in question, the contribution of Embrapa Uva e Vinho in conducting technical studies stands out. Together with other partner institutions, the dossier that was part of the registration request with the INPI was prepared. In turn, Mapa, through its Geographical Indication Coordination, was responsible for issuing the Official GI Delimitation Instrument. This document attests to the coherence and conformity of the IG's territorial area for the purposes of this registration.
For researcher Jorge Tonietto, from Embrapa Uva e Vinho, this registration is an event of global interest as this is the first tropical wine region in the world to recognize a Geographical Indication with high standards of production requirements, similar to the GIs of countries in European Union.
“For Brazil, in addition to being the first region to obtain the Geographical Indication in a tropical zone, it signals the growing importance of this intertropical zone in the production of wines that has grown, including in central Brazil, with a differentiated viticulture of more than one cycle of the vine per year. From the point of view of wines from the São Francisco Valley, they will now be able to expand their differentiation by origin and quality, under the control of producers. For consumers, it will be an opportunity to find genuine and typical wines from the semi-arid region.
According to the researcher, the expectation is that the IG will not only increase the region's visibility in the domestic and international market, but also stimulate new investments that will increase the competitive capacity of production. “In the medium and long term, it is estimated that territorial development will be positively impacted, strengthened not only by wine production, but also by the expansion of wine tourism and related activities, encouraging new investments, with an impact on regional infrastructure”, he celebrated Tonietto.
Started in 1960, the current delimited area of the São Francisco Valley originated with the organization of irrigated agricultural production in the region. Irrigation allowed land with caatinga, previously considered unproductive, to become green areas along the riverbanks. The vines grown in the region are directly connected to the São Francisco River and enjoy a region with unique characteristics in the world.
According to data from INPI Magazine, the physical attributes of the geographic environment, associated with latitude and semi-arid tropical climate, over time were associated with particular wine production systems. In this way, the region's vines allow successive harvests throughout the year, and such multiple harvests result in original wines.
“This is a historic and long-awaited moment for winemakers in the region, especially those established in the Vale do Submédio São Francisco, in the Pernambuco municipalities of Petrolina, Lagoa Grande and Santa Maria da Boa Vista, in addition to Casa Nova and Curaçá, in Bahia” , highlights José Gualberto de Freitas Almeida, president of Vinhovasf and Valexport (Association of producers and exporters of vegetables and derivatives from the São Francisco Valley). For him it is the realization of a dream. Since recognizing the Vale dos Vinhedos Indication in 2002, he wanted to do the same in the São Francisco Valley.
The commercialization of tropical wines began in the 1980s, according to documents sent to INPI. Currently, the entire delimited area of IP Vale do São Francisco is intended purely for the production of vines intended solely for the production of wines from this delimited area in the Brazilian Northeast. Most producers make wines in their own wineries. In addition to selling the wines produced, the various wineries in the São Francisco Valley increased their participation in wine fairs and events, as well as in gastronomy events, with tastings and leaflet distribution.
Bituruna Wine
Another recognition of Indication of Origin for wines given by the National Institute was granted to Bituruna, a municipality in Paraná known for its wine production. The decision was published on October 18, in the Industrial Property Magazine (RPI).
According to the documentation presented to the Institute, the history of Bituruna wines began in the mid-1940s. Immigrants settled in Rio Grande do Sul moved to Colônia Santa Bárbara, which would later become Bituruna. The patriarchs of these families, with their tradition of drinking wine, took vine cuttings with them for their own consumption. Years later, they decided to start producing wines to sell in the city.
Bituruna produces the traditional burgundy wine and Casca Dura Martha grapes, with a pink color, peculiar to the region. Among the factors that contributed to the recognition of its production are the genetic improvement of grapes, the industrialization of artisanal practices and the Wine Festival, which attracts thousands of tourists to the municipality every year. In 2020, the government of the state of Paraná granted Bituruna, by law, the title of “Wine Capital”.
With these concessions, Brazil now has 105 Geographical Indication records, 72 of which are Indications of Origin (all national) and 32 Denominations of Origin (23 national and nine foreign).
Brazilian Geographical Indications
Geographical Indication is an instrument for recognizing geographic origin, given to products or services that are characteristic of their place of origin, which have intrinsic value, their own identity, which distinguishes them from similar products available on the market.
In addition to Vale do São Francisco and Bituruna, other regions received Geographical Indication recognition for their wine production. It is possible to go on a wine route and taste all the Geographical Indications of the southern region of Brazil, without forgetting to go to Pernambuco to taste the first tropical wine in the world.