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A First For Africa: Botswana Grants Scotch Whiskey Legal Protection

A First For Africa: Botswana Grants Scotch Whiskey Legal Protection

From AfricanLawBusiness. Story by Viktorija Kasperovičiūtė.

Scotch whisky has gained the status of geographical indicator in Botswana, in a groundbreaking move by the Southern African state.

This is the first time an African country has granted geographical indicator status to a drinks producer, following a successful application by the London-based Scotch Whisky Association.

The legal protection effectively means that only whisky produced in Scotland can legally be labelled and sold as Scotch in Botswana.

Scotch is legally recognized as a geographical indicator in over 70 countries, including in all the European Union member states.

Botswana stands out as one of the continent’s most stable countries, both politically and economically. It has a high rating on the rule-of-law index and boasts a comparatively high GDP of $15.81 billion US which is mainly driven by diamond mining, but it is also bolstered by other important sectors including financial services, subsistence farming and a flourishing safari-based tourism industry.

David Frost, CEO of the Scotch Whisky Association, described the development as groundbreaking, emphasizing the positive impact on consumer protection and the importance of consumer confidence “in the quality of what they are buying.” Frost said he expects the demand for Scotch to increase in many African countries in coming years as economies grow.

The growing middle class and rapidly expanding sub-Saharan hospitality sector are signs that Africa is set to become an increasingly lucrative market for drinks producers. The British drinks giant, Diageo, which already operates in 13 African countries, sees the potential. Africa is a hugely important market for the alcoholic beverages industry. Guinness is currently Diageo’s best-selling product. The company is looking to grow further, having invested in excess of $1 billion in the continent over the last five years.

While beer is quite popular, in general, a prevalent spirits culture does not currently exist across Africa. This is likely to change with big names such as Johnnie Walker making significant inroads across West and East Africa in recent years.

Perhaps Scotch will be the trailblazer to pave the path for spirits on the continent, starting with Botswana.

British High Commissioner to Botswana, Nick Pyle, said, “This is great news for British business in Botswana. It will give reassurance to consumers in Botswana that they are buying a quality branded product from the UK.”

In 2014, the value of direct shipments of Scotch to Botswana was up 163 percent from 2013 to £456,728 ($712,632 US) according to figures released by Scotch Whisky Association. Despite its relatively small size, the market also holds value in that a lot of the Scotch shipped to Botswana goes through distribution hubs in South Africa.

Read more at AfricanLawBusiness.