GI tag for Japanese sake in India

This is the first time a product from Japan has been awarded the Geographical Indication (GI) tag In India. The product is named Nihonshu/Japanese sake. India’s Geographical Indications (GI) Registry awarded the GI certificate to the product on 1st April 2024.

In 2022, the Embassy of Japan, New Delhi, filed an application seeking a Geographical Indication (GI) tag for Nihonshu/Japanese sake, an alcoholic beverage. It is learnt that this was the first time when a product from Japan has filed for a tag at the Geographical Indication Registry in India. The GI tag for Nihonshu/Japanese sake would facilitate imports of Sake in India and contribute to the growth of the beverage’s market in India.

Nihonshu is regarded as a special and valuable beverage, which is made from fermenting rice. People traditionally drink Nihonshu on special occasions, such as festivals, weddings or funerals, but it is also consumed on a daily basis. Thus, it is an integral part of the lifestyle and culture in Japan. For making Nihonshu, three main raw materials – rice, koji-kin (a type of fungal spore) and water – are required. Here it deserves a mention that the Sake market is the second largest brewed liquor market in Japan.

The production of Nihonshu follows an alcoholic fermentation method called parallel multiple fermentation, and involves raw material treatment, koji making, starter culture making, mash making, pressing, heat sterilisation and bottling. The rice and koji used should originate in Japan.