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A decision in favor of protecting the PDO "Piment d'Espelette - Ezpeletako Biperra".

The INAO and the Syndicat du Piment d'Espelette have won a case brought since 2018 for the protection of the PDO "Piment d'Espelette - Ezpeletako Biperra". The decision of the Paris judicial court on May 11, 2023 notably enshrines the impossibility for an operator to appropriate a website domain name made up solely of the PDO name.

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Court decision PDO Piment d'Espelette Protection of signs and names
Corde Piment d’Espelette
Corde Piment d’Espelette ©Syndicat de l'AOP Piment d'Espelette

In 2018, a PDO operator had her habilitation withdrawn following an inspection noting several breaches. However, she continued to unduly use the designation on her products, before obtaining authorization again. It also operated a website using the exact name of the PDO, "www.piment-espelette.info", for the sale of chillies, including products not covered by the designation. The case concerned both the usurpation of the name "Piment d'Espelette" following the withdrawal of habilitation, and the use of a disputed domain name for an online sales website.

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The impossibility of using a name after an authorization has been withdrawn, even temporarily

The decision confirms the operator's wrongful use, even though changes were made between the summons and the judgment. Indeed, the Court held that in the absence of authorization between May 20, 2019 and the 2020/2021 season, the producer could not mention the PDO on comparable products, and thus benefit from the PDO's reputation. The Court also found that the operator had created confusion between "Piment d'Espelette" and "Piment Basque", thereby misleading consumers as to the true origin of its products. Lastly, it ruled that the term "espelette type" could not be used to market seeds of the Gorria variety, due to European protection rules.

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Pied de piment d'Espelette
Pied de piment d'Espelette ©Syndicat de l'AOP Piment d'Espelette
Pot de poudre de piment d'Espelette
Pot de poudre de piment d'Espelette ©Syndicat de l'AOP Piment d'Espelette

The domain name reservation, a private use contrary to the collective principle of the PDO

The Tribunal found that the registration and use of the domain name "www.piment-espelette.info" represents a private appropriation of the PDO, and that the ".info" extension misleads the consumer by implying that it is a general information site relating to the Espelette chilli pepper PDO, whereas this is not the case. The Court ruled that the reservation of this domain name constituted a practice contrary to the principle of collective use of the PDO, which belongs to all authorized producers in a given region, and that such a sign cannot be monopolized by a single operator (whether or not it benefits from approval). This is a particularly important decision, in the context of the development of online commerce and the need to protect appellations.

This decision is still subject to appeal.

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