Geographical Indications Case Study: Roquefort Cheese

Introduction

In this paper, one of the popular geographical indicators are considered and discussed in detail. Here, the investigated geographical indicator is Roquefort Cheese. In the following paper, the origin of the Roquefort Cheese, its description, geographical relation, its status before the registration and lastly, the contribution to the local economy and the development of the social settings are all presented.

Origin of the product

Roquefort Cheese originates from Roquefort-Sur-Soulzon, a small town located on the Causse du Larzac, which is an agricultural area in the south of France. The Roquefort Cheese was first mentioned in the year 1070 when discussing the Carolingian period. During the 15th century, the cheese refining industry was heavily based in this region. Under the leadership of King Charles VI and King Charles VII, the Roquefort Cheese started to take hold of other regions as well for its taste and texture. In order to ensure the purity and sanctity of the product, the parliament of Toulouse passed a law that made the production and trading of false Roquefort Cheese punishable by law in the year 1666. By the 19th century, the Roquefort Cheese was considered to be a significant contributor of French culture just like other such important contributors like Champagne (Roquefort Confederation, 2019).

In addition to this Assignment Help Brisbane, the Roquefort Cheese was also acknowledged during the Age of the Enlightenment by philosophers and other important figures of the French society. Diderot, a French philosopher of that age, suggested that Roquefort cheese was the ‘King of Cheeses’.Today, Roquefort Cheese is considered to be one of the world's best known blue cheeses along with Bleu d'Auvergne, Danablu, Stilton, and Gorgonzola cheese. Roquefort Cheese is made from sheep milk and is also regarded as sheep milk cheese. In 1925, the Roquefort Cheese was awarded the title of Appellation d’Origine – ‘label of origin’ and was confirmed as Appellation d’Origine at the international level in 1951. It was recognized as Appellation d’Origine Protégée, a ‘protected label of origin, throughout Europe in 2001 and then in 2005 (Roquefort Confederation, 2019).

Description of the product

The Roquefort cheese has a moist and creamy texture and is breakable into small pieces very easily. Blue mold is added to the Roquefort cheese which gives it a sharp and tangy taste apart from its salty taste. It is said to be crumbly in touch and has a blue-veined look to it due to the blue mold added to it. The Roquefort cheese is produced in a big round wheel with a thickness of 10 centimeters and has an overall weight of about 2.5 kilograms (Cheese dot com, 2019). It takes a period of 5 months for ripening and is said to be best consumed during the months of April to October however, the product is available throughout the year. It is suggested that the Roquefort cheese is best served when on room temperature. Also, it must be on room temperature for at least one hour before its consumption for better taste and texture. In addition to this, the Roquefort cheese must be stored in the lower compartment of the refrigerator and it must be stored in either they default packaging or in an aluminum foil or container (Roquefort Confederation, 2019).