SYDNEY (Kashmir English): The Federal Court of Australia has rejected an appeal filed by India’s Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) in a case relating to the use of the word “Basmati” for rice by Pakistani authorities.
The Australian court also ordered the Indian authority to pay the respondent’s costs, further strengthening Pakistan’s position that the term Basmati cannot be claimed exclusively by a single national authority.
According to a press statement issued by the Ministry of Commerce, APEDA had sought registration of “Basmati” as a certification trademark for rice in Australia.
However, an Australian Registrar of Trade Marks’ Delegate rejected the plea on December 22, 2022, ruling that the term could not distinguish rice certified by APEDA from Basmati rice legitimately produced and marketed by other traders.
APEDA then challenged the decision before the Federal Court of Australia.
Pakistani traders can also use the term ‘Basmati’
The court has now dismissed the appeal, effectively upholding the earlier verdict, including recognition that Basmati rice is also grown in Pakistan and that Pakistani traders have a legitimate right to use the term.
Pakistan’s Ministry of Commerce has welcomed the decision and said the ruling represents a significant development in Pakistan’s longstanding position that Basmati originates from a historically recognised growing region encompassing areas of both Pakistan and India.
The ministry said the decision reinforces the view that no single national authority can claim an exclusive right over the word “Basmati” to the exclusion of producers and exporters from the other country who have an equally legitimate right to use the name.
Pakistan has consistently opposed Indian attempts to secure exclusive rights over the Basmati name in global markets.
The Ministry of Commerce said it has coordinated with relevant national institutions and stakeholders to protect the interests of Pakistani Basmati growers, millers and exporters.
The outcome, it added, would help preserve the right of Pakistani producers and exporters to market authentic Pakistani Basmati rice in Australia while protecting their commercial and intellectual-property interests.
