An Edict from the Thought Police: Reconciling American and European Approaches to Geographical Designations

Abstract

The United States is, relatively speaking, a young country, built by immigrants who tried to replicate the best of the world they left behind. The European Union is, strictly speaking, even younger than the U.S., but its roots stretch back both far and wide. Much of American culture can be traced back to the traditions of Europe; often, the very words we use prove this heritage. Given this difference in development and present states, one would expect these two entities to take different approaches to use of geographical descriptors for foods. Nonetheless, whether as a result of that common heritage or of the common necessities of the modern marketplace, American and European regulation of this area often achieves the same results through wildly different routes.