From Tradition to Recognition: The Journey of Kakhuri Shashkhi

Sakpatenti, the National Intellectual Property Center of Georgia, has officially registered the Geographical Indication (GI) standard for Kakhuri Shashkhi. This means that for the first time, producers can follow a formal set of standards, which did not exist before and were passed down through generations but never formally documented.

Kakhuri Shashkhi is a salted, seasoned, smoked, dried product made from local forest-reared pigs. Kakheti’s rich forests, filled with oak, beech, chestnut, walnut, crab apple, medlar, cornelian cherry, blackberry, hawthorn, barberry, and other fruit-bearing plants, give local pork its delicate taste and aroma.

The specification is the result of nearly two years of joint work of the ALCP2 and the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture with local producers from Kakheti region. The successful registration of Kakhuri Shashkhi of a product of Geographical Indication (GI) will help mark the development of a new era in Georgian regional produce and will help preserve and augment this famous local product and provide a model for other products in other regions.  Shashkhi makers complying with the standard will be able to produce and sell a value-added product that enhances the heritage of the region, boosting sales, production and incomes for local people.

The ALCP2 implemented by Mercy Corps Georgia, is funded by the Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC) in cooperation with the Austrian Development Cooperation (ADC) and Sweden.