High Quality Production and Regionally Specific Products

This definition includes a range of different approaches to food production that have one or more of the following qualities: small scale / artisanal / farmhouse production with specific traditional and/or regional characteristics. Examples would include foods registered under the EU system for Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) and Protected Geographical Indication (PGI). However any definition of quality foods needs to be drawn wider than this. This is especially true in northern Europe where there is less of a tradition of regional designation. Quality foods might include farmhouse cheeses, pickles or jams, and other products that might be characterised as 'Slow Food.' The taste and character of such foods depends upon the use of specific ingredients / techniques (which are often associated with less intensive patterns of farming) and/or on-farm processing. These products generally attract price premia (sometimes significant) from discerning consumers, help maintain farm incomes and, sometimes, act as 'flagship products' for their regions.


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