Aiming to collaborate with the preservation of Pará’s natural and cultural heritage, representatives from 31 institutions attended, in May, the 2nd Special Meeting of the Pará State Technical Forum on Geographical Indications and Collective Trademarks. Held at the Vale Technology Institute (ITV) in Pará, the event’s main objective was to plan activities for the next two-year period (2019/2021).
In addition to debating the actions foreseen in the social, environmental, and economic development policies to strengthen the production chains in Pará, the forum members proposed the creation of four working groups:
- Establishment and institution of public policies in the state of Pará;
- Follow-up of the processes that have already been granted and those currently underway to receive the Geographical Indication label;
- Identification of new processes by defining a methodology based on the recommendations of the National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI);
- Publicizing and socializing information.
ITV will take part in the WGs regarding Pará’s public policies and the identification of new processes through methodology. “The topics to be addressed in both are extremely relevant for the improvement and strengthening of the mining business in this context,” says Rosa Paes, researcher at ITV’s Socioeconomics and Sustainability Research Group.
As a final product, there was a proposal to hold a seminar in November in which the results of the activities carried out during the whole year will be presented. Among those present were representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (MAPA), the State Secretariat for Agricultural and Fishery Development (SEDAP), the Support Service to Micro and Small Enterprises in the State of Pará (SEBRAE – PA) and the Federal Rural University of the Amazon (UFRA). The event was also attended by members of the Federal Government, educational institutions, NGOs, and companies related to the sector.
For the leader of ITV-DS’s Socioeconomics and Sustainability Research Group, Jose Aroudo Mota, “the forum is one of the components of the modern socioeconomics of territorial development, as it aims to value the organizational management efforts and the application of material and financial resources of the Pará State Government, companies, and educational institutions in the quest to recognize the tradition and culture of the people of Pará in the production of any products with a regional label or specificity”.
Vale was represented by the Scientific Director of ITV Pará, José Oswaldo Siqueira, and by researchers José Aroudo Mota and Rosa Paes.
What is Geographic Indication?
Provided for in the Industrial Property Law (No. 9279/1996), the Geographical Indication (GI) is an industrial property asset used to identify the geographical name of the country, city, region, or locality that has become known as the center of extraction, production, or manufacturing of a given product.
This is the case of the well-known Cocoa of Tomé-Açu, first GI of Pará, which benefits a large number of producers in the state. Currently, two products that are highly appreciated in the local cuisine are in the process of being registered as denomination: the buffalo milk cheese, from Marajó Island, and the flour from Bragança (a municipality in the northeast region).
Seeking to preserve the rights related to the knowledge of traditional peoples and communities, the Geographical Indication has the potential to differentiate products and promote regional development, positively impacting producers, service providers, and consumers.
