Anger is escalating across Europe over strange proposals Brussels is preparing to impose so that all slices of meat on a doner kebab are exactly the same thickness.
Turkey has applied to register its best-known specialty, the doner kebab, in the European Union, following in the footsteps of Italian Neapolitan pizza, Spanish serrano ham and French champagne.
Ankara has asked for very specific rules on how thin the slices of doner meat must be, what the meat must consist of and that there must be a “specific standard” in its production.
Turkey wants to trademark the name doner kebab in Europe so that it can only be used by those who comply with the patented production method and the specifications it proposes.
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Only large slabs of beef and lamb “horizontally cut into 3- to 5-millimeter-thick pieces” will qualify as doner, while chicken pieces can be between one and two centimeters thick in the poultry variety….
If the proposal makes it through the three-month European red tape process, it will mean there will be a single EU standard for what might be called a doner kebab – but one that restaurants and shops across Europe will have to follow. adhere to.
Only large slabs of beef and lamb “horizontally cut into 3- to 5-millimeter-thick pieces” will qualify as doner, while chicken pieces can be between one and two centimeters thick in the poultry variety….
The doner kebab, the classic meat dish, consists of finely chopped slices of beef, lamb or chicken, which are rotated on a stainless steel spit over the fire, cooking the meat as it rotates vertically on its axis. Before being placed on the spit, the meat is marinated in a mixture of yogurt, pepper, tomato paste, herbs, spices and salt.
One of the reasons why Turkey wants the kebab to be protected by the EU is to preserve the Turkish culinary tradition, as the dish has evolved during its “journey” in Europe.
The doner market in Europe is estimated to be worth a staggering 3.5 billion euros, according to the Association of Turkish Doner Producers in Europe.
Although somewhat linked to the EU’s Protected Designation of Origin quality system, traditional specialties are not included in the scope of geographical indications – which offer the highest level of protection for food across Europe.
This increased level of protection is afforded to products that have a direct link to a geographic region, which is not the case for the traditional doner meat cooking technique.
The Turkish proposal claims that “Greece was the first country in Europe where ‘Doner’ was introduced during a population exchange between Turkey and Greece in 1922. In Greece, it was called ‘gyros,'” Turkey’s application states.
For example, this is the reason why Parma ham has received geographical indications, while jamon serrano has only received protected status.
The specialty food label has caused controversy in the past, including when the use of the traditional term “prosek” for a Croatian dessert wine was contested by Italians as it sounded too similar to Italian Prosecco.
As far as the Turkish proposals are concerned, complaints can be made by Greece. According to the Turkish proposal, “it is claimed that Greece was the first country in Europe where the ‘Doner’ was introduced during an exchange of populations between Turkey and Greece in 1922. In Greece, it was called ‘gyros,'” the application states. Turkey. Gyros is of course made from pork, which Turks avoid, as its consumption is prohibited by the Islamic religion.
So a tense consultation phase has opened that will last three months, where countries will be able to challenge Turkey’s request.
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