Slovenia and Austria in sausage tug o’ war
Slovenia has submitted its Kranjska Klobasa pork sausage to the European Commission for a PGI, a Protected Geographical Indication. The problem is this is identical to the in Austria produced Krainerwurst.
The sausage is a pasteurised semi-durable sausage made from minced pork and pork fat, seasoned with salt, pepper, and garlic, and is stuffed into a pig small intestine with the ends tied together by means of a wooden dowel.
Slovenia has submitted this pork delicacy from northern Slovenia for a PGI, a status that if granted, would make Kranjska klobasa and the way its made protected, and only to be manufactured in the Kranjska region of Slovenia.
The sausage has its origins in the Austro-Hungarian past and is found widely within the dissolved bounds of the former empire. Austria intends to fight this right to exclusive manufacture, claiming equal rights to produce its identical Krainerwurst. If the EU Commission grants the PGI to Slovenia, the Austrian sausage would have to go by a different name.
The Austrians have no intention of changing the name of their Krainerwurst, nor of the cheese-filled option, the Kaiserkrainer.
The PGI protects how and where the product is made and assembled, but does not define the sourcing of the raw ingredients. The Kranjska klobasa application is the fourth pork-based product application Slovenia is seeking geographical protection for.
Both parties await the decision of the Commission.
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