Fazli mango, Bagda shrimp to get GI certificates

Fazli Mango and Bagda Shrimp are going to get GI registration certificates as geographically indicated products of Bangladesh.

Md. Abdus Sattar, Registrar of Patent, Design and Trademark department of the government of Bangladesh has confirmed the news.

He said a notification has been issued to recognise Fazli Mango and Bagda Shrimp as GI products. “We hope to get the certificates in the next two weeks.”

A geographical indication (GI) is a name or sign used on products which corresponds to a specific geographical location or origin (e.g., a town, region, or country), according to Wikipedia.org.

The use of a geographical indication, as an indication of the product's source, acts as a certification that the product possesses certain qualities, is made according to traditional methods, or enjoys a good reputation due to its geographical origin.

Sattar said that as per the rules, the geographical indicators of these two agricultural products have been verified and published in two journals.

The certificate is issued if no one objects within two months of its publication in the journal. No one objected to Fazli mango and Bagda shrimp, he said.

Rajshahi Fruit Development Research Center had applied for the GI certificate of Fazli mango in March 2017. In May 2019, the Department of Fisheries had applied for Bagda shrimp GI certification. If these two products get GI certificates, the total number of Bangladesh’s registered products will be 11.

Fazli mangoes of Bangladesh are juicy, fibrous and large in size. Besides Bangladesh, this mango is also grown in West Bengal and Bihar of India.

A little later than other popular mangoes, Fazli mango ripens in the month of Ashar-Shravan. Rajshahi and Chapainawabganj districts of Bangladesh are famous for Fazli mango cultivation.

Bagda shrimp is a black striped shrimp. There are more than five hundred species of crustaceans in the world. The black striped Bagda is slightly flattened compared to other shrimps.

The shrimp are commercially grown in the United States, Mexico, India, Ecuador, China, and Indonesia. About 80 percent of the shrimp farmed in the coastal areas of Bangladesh are Bagda.

Earlier, in 2016, Bangladesh obtained its first GI certificate for Jamdani saree. Subsequently, it got GI certification for Kshirsapati mango in 2019 and Dhakai muslin in 2021. Other products with GI certificates are: Shataranji (carpet) of Rangpur, Rajshahi Silk, Kataribhog rice of Dinajpur, Sadamati and Kalijira rice of Vijaypur of Netrokona, respectively.

So far, Bangladesh has applied for GI certification for a total of 37 products. Haribhanga mango of Rangpur, Kanchagolla (uncooked sweet) of Natore and buffalo milk of Noakhali are some of them.

If the climate and environment of a country is of special importance in the production of a product, if the subject is related to the culture of that country, then it is recognised as a geographically indicative product of that country.

Geographical Indications protection is granted through the TRIPS Agreement.