Taken from: Glas Istre
The process of protecting the geographical designation of origin is well underway, with the first part successfully completed. We have finished conducting surveys where we invited the wider community to create a joint description of the Istrian white truffle. We described what the Istrian truffle looks like and its characteristics, and submitted the specification to the relevant ministry for review, confirmation, or amendment, in order to protect the Istrian white truffle, first at the national level, and then to initiate the protection procedure at the European level, as reported by the President of the Truffle Hunters’ Association.
An interesting comparison can be made with the Hungarians, who successfully protected the summer black truffle. Regarding its branding, the Hungarian ministry established a working group of fifty members to implement this.
Although it is not the same type of truffle, as the “Istra” Truffle Hunters’ Association protects the Istrian white truffle, whose season is in autumn, and the Hungarians succeeded with a type of black summer truffle, representatives of this Istrian association visited Hungary in April for a summer black truffle fair. The intention was to see how they described their truffle and how they carried out the protection process.
The Hungarians have protected the Hungarian summer black truffle at the European level, obtaining geographical indication protection. The Italians have geographical indication protection for the common porcino mushroom, Fungo di Borgotaro. If the Istrian people succeed in protecting the European white truffle, it would be the third case in Europe of a mushroom receiving geographical indication protection.
Read the full article at: https://www.glasistre.hr/istra/2024/08/21/razgovarali-smo-s-darkom-muzicom-prvim-istarskim-tartufarom-i-predsjednikom-udruge-tartufara-istra-951903
