Flour geographical indication in the Southern Bahia

The region surrounding the city of Buerarema, is also known as “Bolsão do Maruim” (a rural area contained in the municipalities of Buerarema, São José da Vitória, Ilhéus and Una, in South Bahia) Where cassava production, is notoriously recognized for its excellent flour quality. Aiming to add reliability and national recognition, this work presents points of attention to be observed in a market strategy based on the registration of the Geographical Indication (GI) of cassava flour from Buerarema. For example, some GIs include: Champagne from France, Port wine from Portugal, coffee from Colombia, Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese from Italy, Canastra cheese from Brazil and Cachaça from Salinas also in Brazil. The GI registration is granted to products or services that are characteristic from their site of origin, which generates renown and value, also giving emphasis in relation to their competitors in the market place. There are thousands of GIs registered in the world and most belong to the agricultural and food sector and their commercial value is estimated in billions of dollars. The work is of an Applied nature and through a qualitative, exploratory research, using the technical procedure of action-research and bibliography. As a result, the main aspects are presented that the possible Gi registration for Buerarema flour must observe and define in order to protect its product from local competition and also in global markets.