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03:15
An EU court has ruled in favor of Greece and Cyprus retaining exclusive rights to the name 'feta' inside and outside the bloc, bringing to conclusion a long-standing dispute over which countries can and can't use the cheese's moniker.
The crumbly, soft white sheep's cheese, which is closely linked to Greek culture, had again become the center of a European spat after the European Commission, Greece and Cyprus accused Denmark of breaking EU law by allowing its dairies to sell counterfeit feta outside the bloc.
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Also known as white gold, feta has been considered Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) product since 2002, meaning only Greece and Cyprus can produce and sell the cheese under the brand name.
Denmark, which had allowed companies to domestically produce their own feta for sale outside of the EU, had argued that the rules on the moniker only applied to products sold inside the bloc.
Last year, Greek feta exports were worth almost $400m. /CGTN Europe
Last year, Greek feta exports were worth almost $400m. /CGTN Europe
The EU's highest court on Thursday ruled in favor of Greece and Cyprus, re-enforcing that the EU's geographical indications framework also applied outside the bloc's borders as well as confirming the two countries' exclusive rights to produce and export feta.
Many Greek cheese sellers, fiercely protective of their country's tangy export, rejoiced on hearing the ruling.
"The real feta can only be produced and made in Greece. It's the sheep that we have in Greece and the milk that makes it special, and it's only possible to find them here," said Athens cheese-seller Katerina Veropoulou.
"Of course, it's considered a Protected Designation of Origin product and you can't find it anywhere else than here because anywhere else you buy it – it's not feta, it's just white cheese."
Veropoulou added that one of the reasons some tourists came to Greece was for the feta and a chance to take it back home with them: "They don't go to Denmark to do so. Have you ever heard someone going to another country bringing feta back home? Never, so feta was, is and it will always be a Greek product."
Although other types of cheese in Greece are popular, such as graviera or mizithra, feta tops the charts with exports last year reaching close to $400 million.
But besides the financial benefits, many Greeks are just happy to take pride in the country's links to the cheese.
"Every product should be sold with the name of the country it comes from and not from other countries," said Athens resident Dimitris, complaining that the alleged theft of Greek produce extended to other products as well.
"For instance, we sell olive oil to others and they claim it's Spanish or Italian, when it's Greek. It's not only feta."
Such pride goes back a long way in Greece, with the production of cheese from goat's or sheep's milk dating back to the 8th century BC – so some might say that's how far back feta goes.
More than 2,000 years later, the country still manages to keep the tradition going, now with the added bonus of having the legal clout to make sure feta remains Greek.