Protected designation of origin in the context of "Denominazione di origine controllata"

Prosciutto (/prəˈʃuːtoʊ, proʊˈ-/ prə-SHOO-toh, proh-; Italian: [proʃˈʃutto]), also known as prosciutto crudo, is an uncooked, unsmoked, and dry-cured ham. It is usually served thinly sliced.

Several regions in Italy have their own variations of prosciutto crudo, each with degrees of protected status, but the most prized are Prosciutto di Parma DOP, from Emilia-Romagna, and Prosciutto di San Daniele DOP, from Friuli-Venezia Giulia. Unlike speck (Speck Alto Adige) from the South Tyrol region, prosciutto is not smoked. There is also a tradition of making prosciutto in southern Switzerland.

The following four classifications of wine constitute the Italian system of labelling and legally protecting Italian wine:

• Denominazione di origine (DO, rarely used; Italian: [denominatˈtsjoːne di oˈriːdʒine]; 'designation of origin');
• Indicazione geografica tipica (IGT; Italian: [indikatˈtsjoːne dʒeoˈɡraːfika ˈtiːpika]; 'indication of geographical typicality');
• Denominazione di origine controllata (DOC; Italian: [denominatˈtsjoːne di oˈriːdʒine kontrolˈlaːta]; 'controlled designation of origin'); and
• Denominazione di origine controllata e garantita (DOCG; Italian: [denominatˈtsjoːne di oˈriːdʒine kontrolˈlaːta e ɡɡaranˈtiːta]; 'controlled and guaranteed designation of origin').

The system was introduced in 1963 shortly after the Treaty of Rome established Italy as a founding member of the European Economic Community, and was modelled on the extant French appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) laws. It was overhauled in 1992 to match new European Union law on protected designation of origin, introducing the more general denominazione di origine protetta (DOP) designation for foods and agricultural products, including wines. Further EU reforms to harmonise agricultural policy in 2008 meant that designations used in member states, and thus Italian designations, were registered with the EU by the end of 2011, with subsequent new denominations or elevations approved by the EU.

Sherry (Spanish: Jerez [xeˈɾeθ]) is a fortified wine produced from white grapes grown around the city of Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia, Spain. Sherry is a drink produced in a variety of styles made primarily from the Palomino grape, ranging from light versions similar to white table wines, such as Manzanilla and fino, to darker and heavier versions that have been allowed to oxidise as they age in barrel, such as Amontillado and oloroso. Sweet dessert wines are also made from Pedro Ximénez or Moscatel grapes, and are sometimes blended with Palomino-based sherries.

Under the official name of Jerez-Xérès-Sherry, it is one of Spain's wine regions, a Denominación de Origen Protegida (DOP). The word sherry is an anglicisation of Xérès (Jerez). Sherry was previously known as sack, from the Spanish saca, meaning "extraction" from the solera. In Europe, "sherry" has protected designation of origin status, and under Spanish law, all wine labelled as "sherry" must legally come from the Sherry Triangle, an area in the province of Cádiz between Jerez de la Frontera, Sanlúcar de Barrameda, and El Puerto de Santa María. In 1933 the Jerez denominación de origen was the first Spanish denominación to be officially recognised in this way, officially named D.O. Jerez-Xeres-Sherry and sharing the same governing council as D.O. Manzanilla Sanlúcar de Barrameda.

Marsala is a fortified wine, dry or sweet, produced in the region surrounding the Italian city of Marsala in Sicily. Marsala first received Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC) status in 1969.The European Union grants Protected designation of origin (PDO) status to Marsala and most other countries limit the use of the term Marsala to products from the Marsala area.

While unfortified wine is also produced in the Marsala region, it does not qualify for the Marsala DOC.

In France, the appellation d'origine contrôlée (French pronunciation: [apɛlasjɔ̃ dɔʁiʒin kɔ̃tʁole], lit. 'controlled designation of origin'; abbr. AOC [a.o.se]) is a label that identifies an agricultural product whose stages of production and processing are carried out in a defined geographical area – the terroir – and using recognized and traditional know-how. The specificity of an AOC product is determined by the combination of a physical and biological environment with established production techniques transmitted within a human community. Together, these give the product its distinctive qualities.

The defining technical and geographic factors are set forth in standards for each product, including wines, cheeses and meats. Other countries and the European Union have similar labeling systems. The European Union's protected designation of origin (PDO and PGI) system has harmonized the protection of all geographical indications and their registration. When labelling wine however, producers may still use recognized traditional terms like AOC, and are not required to display the PDO and PGI logos or terms, mostly for aesthetic reasons.