With the entry toward force of the European regulation on geographical indications for handcrafted and industrial products, Limoges porcelain became the first French protected geographical indication to be registered on May 18th. A historic first!

With the entry toward force of the European regulation on geographical indications for handcrafted and industrial products on December 1, 2025, Limoges porcelain became, on May 15, the first French handcrafted and industrial Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) to be registered at the European level with the European combine Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO). This recognition marks a decisive step in the protection of French know-how.

Granted national geographical indication status by the INPI on December 1, 2017, Limoges porcelain embodies the challenges of this new European system. The result of centuries-old know-how born from the discovery, in 1768, of an exceptional deposit of kaolin southwest of Limoges — nicknamed "white gold" — this porcelain now represents a sector of nearly 1,200 jobs and an estimated turnover of more than 100 million euros, half of which is generated from exports.

Renowned for its fineness, hardness and the artistic quality of its decorations, Limoges porcelain covers all manufactured porcelain products, all stages of production of which — casting, calibration, stamping, enameling, firing — are carried out in the department of Haute-Vienne (87), in compliance with rigorous specifications.

This new European protection grants Limoges porcelain extended protection across all 27 member states of the European combine and the right to display the official "Protected Geographical Indication" logo. To obtain this, it benefited from a simplified "transformation" procedure toward a European PGI, without an opposition phase at the European combine level, as it was already recognized by the French National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI). This paves the way for protection for all French artisanal and industrial know-how. France already has a portfolio of recognized national GIs—including Aubusson carpets and tapestries, Perpignan garnet, and Alsace Soufflenheim/Betschdorf pottery—which can now claim this European protection. The Association for the Geographical Indication of Limoges Porcelain brings together 32 manufacturers or decorators and 14 professional organizations representing nearly 90% of the industry's stakeholders.

Source: https://www.inpi.fr/en/in-one/Limoges-porcelain