Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On April 4, 2022 a roundtable discussion on the introduction of geographic indications for specific agricultural products unique to western regions of Uzbekistan – Khorezm melons – took place in Urgench. The event was hosted by the USAID Agribusiness Development Activity and “Regional Integration and Capacity Building to Boost Competitiveness of MSMEs in Agribusiness and Trade Promotion in Central Asia - CANDY V" project, financed by the European Union program “Central Asia – Invest V” and the Austrian Development Agency, and implemented by Hilfswerk International with participation of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) project “Strengthening sustainable food systems through geographical indications”.

Since ancient times, the Khorezm region of Uzbekistan has been known as a territory for the cultivation of melons – today it grows about 125 varieties of melon. The Gurvak melon has a special place in this diversity and is especially appreciated by local gourmets - in honor of this melon, the region even hosts a Gurvak festival. Gurvak grows in clay-sandy and slightly saline soil and only in the Khorezm region and in Karakalpakstan. It is dark green in color and round in shape with a thin skin. The delicious taste inherent in the melon Gurvak made it into a "visiting card" of these areas.

«Two chefs can cook the same dish, but one of them gets it tastier – many different factors are at play, for example, when he adds the salt, in what proportions he distributes the ingredients and so on. It is the same with us - you will not find such sweet and tasty varieties of melons anywhere else, and all because we cultivate the land and grow melons according to the methods of our grandfathers. In addition, the special soil composition in the Amu Darya delta also has influence on the melons’ quality – even the water here is different», - explains participant of the round table, a farmer, Khudoybergan Allaberganov.

Melon Gurvak is a vivid example of a guarantee of quality and special characteristics of the product due to its geographical origin. Other examples are the world-famous olive oil of Provence, the silks of China and Lyon, Samarkand paper, the wines of Bordeaux, the Loire and Burgundy. According to the new Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On Geographical Indications”, traditional goods related to their place of origin can acquire the status of “geographical indications” in Uzbekistan and receive legal protection as objects of intellectual property. The Law was designed with FAO support provided within the framework of the project on “Strengthening the administrative system to manage and support sustainable geographical indications”.

“In promotion of geographical indications in Uzbekistan, FAO provides assistance through two different projects. The first has provided support to the development of the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On Geographical Indications” – now it is successfully completed. The second project “Strengthening sustainable food systems through geographical indications” aims at introduction of Geographical Indications practices for the selected products through awareness-raising campaigns and capacity development measures, developing and implementing an effective Geographical Indications marketing strategy as well as framing agricultural market information support in the context of GIs for facilitating agri-food export promotion”, - Sherzod Umarov, Assistant FAO Representative noted.

Gurvak melon might be the pilot product to be registered under the new Law. Participants of the round table agreed that registering the Gurvak melon as geographical indication will foster increased exports, promote agritourism in the region and strengthen the “made in Uzbekistan” brand.