Brussels – As of last Friday Marienbad spa wafers bear the Protected Geographical Indication label, given by the EU.
Marienbad wafers belong among the most famous examples of products for which the Czech Republic wanted the Protected Geographical Indication label (PGI), but the process was one of the most complicated. The Germans claimed that the wafers are not really produced in the region in question – Marienbad and Veká Hleďsebe. The wafer manufacturer must now prove that all the steps of the production take place in this specific region.
The application for the PGI was filed by the association KLS Klimentov from Velká Hleďseba and Opavia-LU from the company Danone.
“Having Marienbad wafers in the list of PGI products means a guarantee for consumers that the product comes from the appropriate region and was made using traditional technologies and traditional ingredients,” said Agriculture Minister Jakub Šebesta.
The case of Marienbad wafers was similar to that of Carlsbad wafers, where the representatives of Sudeten German regional associations claimed that Germans expelled from Czechoslovakia after World War II brought the traditional wafer recipe with them to Germany and Austria, where the wafers are being made using the traditional method to this day.
The Carlsbad wafer dispute remains unresolved.
The Czech Republic currently has 19 products that are registered with the EU. They include Hořice rolled wafers Štramberk ears and Pardubice gingerbread.