Producers estimate that global sales of counterfeit cheese amount to around $1.73 billion (€1.6 billion) annually.
In the United States alone, the production of imitation Italian cheeses reached an astonishing 5.7 billion pounds (2.6 billion kilos) in 2021, according to Coldiretti.
Oh, for Chrissake. It’s not a counterfeit. “Parmesan and Reggiano” is a genericized identifier in the US. Everyone in the US knows that they’re buying a variety of cheese, not a cheese from Italy. If you want something from Italy, you look on the label for a “product of Italy”.
Saying that this is a counterfeit is roughly equivalent to me saying that the EU produces counterfeit Wendy’s food because Wendy’s-the-hamburger-company doesn’t own the Wendy’s trademark in the EU. Nobody in the Netherlands going to Wendy’s is expecting that they’re getting something from Wendy’s-the-hamburger-chain.
This is a cultural thing, in Europe we take these kind of things much more seriously. We take pride in our regional products and they’re protected by law. It’s not tied to a company like in your example, that we care much less about, it’s more a matter of national or regional identity.
But this logic goes even further. For example, in my home country you can’t label almond milk as “almond milk” since it’s not actually milk but a plant product.
Frikandel Speciaal, Bitterballen, and something called “smulrol” are a few favorites on the menu at Wendy’s in the Dutch city of Goes. There are no 4 for 4€ deals, no Baconators or Son of Baconators, no Frostys to dip your fries. There’s not even an adorable, freckle-faced mascot. Instead, it’s the glorious mullet of the chain-smoking man behind the counter, Albert van der Hoek.
This is what Wendy’s looks like in Europe: A hole-in-the-wall chippie run by some brute Dutch sailors with a serious case of stick-it-to-the-man-itis. It’s the reason a certain billion-dollar, red-headed American fast food chain has been kicked off the continent.
Oh, for Chrissake. It’s not a counterfeit. “Parmesan and Reggiano” is a genericized identifier in the US. Everyone in the US knows that they’re buying a variety of cheese, not a cheese from Italy. If you want something from Italy, you look on the label for a “product of Italy”.
Saying that this is a counterfeit is roughly equivalent to me saying that the EU produces counterfeit Wendy’s food because Wendy’s-the-hamburger-company doesn’t own the Wendy’s trademark in the EU. Nobody in the Netherlands going to Wendy’s is expecting that they’re getting something from Wendy’s-the-hamburger-chain.
This is a cultural thing, in Europe we take these kind of things much more seriously. We take pride in our regional products and they’re protected by law. It’s not tied to a company like in your example, that we care much less about, it’s more a matter of national or regional identity.
But this logic goes even further. For example, in my home country you can’t label almond milk as “almond milk” since it’s not actually milk but a plant product.
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We don’t have Wendy’s in here
https://www.thrillist.com/travel/nation/wendys-locations-europe-netherlands-goes-restaurant
I meant more a franchised american Wendy’s, not snackbar with the same name