Scotch whisky gets Australian trademark

Scotch whisky has been trademarked in Australia giving consumers and the industry better protection against fakes.

Australia has had a “serious problem” with sales of fake Scotch whisky in recent years, according to the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA).

The UK trade body blamed the removal of protection for Scotch from the country’s Food Standards Code in 2000 and a lack of enforcement by authorities for the country’s fake whisky trade and said the onus for policing the market had fallen entirely on the trade.

Since 2005 the SWA has taken action to stop the sale of some 40 fake Scotch whisky brands in Australia.

Today, new measures were announced to trademark Scotch whisky in Australia to protect consumers and the industry from fakes – a move lobbied for by the SWA, UK Government and European Commission.

Alan Park, legal adviser at the SWA, said: “I have been involved in actions against many fake ‘Scotch whisky’ products in Australia in recent years. Registration of Scotch Whisky as a certification trade mark is a major breakthrough and will make it easier to crack down on fakes and therefore protect consumers, although the onus to prevent the sale of fakes still rests on the industry.

“It has taken time and effort to achieve this result and we would like to thank the UK Government and European Commission for their support. Scotch Whisky exports are of immense value to the economy so overseas protection is vital. We will be monitoring the market and will use our new protection for Scotch Whisky to take decisive action against fakes.”

Scotch Whisky exports to Australia were worth £84 million in 2013, up 7% from £79m in 2012, making it the twelfth largest overseas market by value.