随身英语

Food for Thought! 食物品牌受到保护

bottles of whisky

Is Scotch your favourite tipple?

For many people around the world a glass of Scotch is their favourite tipple.

Scotch whisky can come in blended or single malt varieties. Connoisseurs of the drink debate its tone, taste and its ageing process.

Distilleries around the world produce the drink but whisky-makers in Scotland have been trying to protect its name, saying that only when it's made there can it really be Scotch.

They say it's their distilling process involving barley and water that makes their product unique. Whisky is big business with almost £1.5 billion (15 billion yuan) worth of it exported in the first half of this year.

Now, a new agreement by the Chinese government is expected to mean that Scotch sold in China will have been produced in Scotland. The UK Agriculture Minister, Jim Paice, says "If it says Scotch whisky on the bottle it will be Scotch whisky in the bottle in China's bars, restaurants, hotels and homes."

This is not the first time a food has been protected. In Europe many types of food have been given special protection. For example, the Champagne region of France is home to the drink of the same name.

Local producers have fought hard to make sure only sparkling wine made there can carry the name champagne. The European Union has legally protected its name with the Treaty of Madrid and its protection has been accepted by many other countries worldwide.

Numerous other edible products have their regional names protected but why is it so important? Well, giving a product its name of origin does add value by giving it a USP – it's unique selling point.

Consumers know where it has been made and that it's been manufactured to an exclusive recipe and ultimately that it tastes fantastic. At least from now on, everyone in China who enjoys a 'wee dram' knows they are drinking a genuine Scottish product.

Glossary 词汇表 (收听发音, 请单击英语单词)


教育频道意见反馈留言板 电话:010-82628888-5178 欢迎批评指正

新浪简介 | About Sina | 广告服务 | 联系我们 | 招聘信息 | 网站律师 | SINA English | 会员注册 | 产品答疑

Copyright © 1996 - 2010 SINA Corporation, All Rights Reserved

新浪公司 版权所有