Following the favourable vote by the European Parliament, the EU Council has expressed its support for the proposal for the European Union to accede to the Geneva Act of the Lisbon Agreement, a multilateral treaty administered by WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization). The Council has effectively established the legal basis for the European Union's accession by adopting a series of rules concerning the accession process and other purely procedural matters.

There are currently 28 contracting parties to the Geneva Act, of which only 7 are European. The procedure allows for the protection of an appellation of origin in all contracting countries through a single registration. Accession to the Act therefore guarantees a high level of protection, in a rapid and indefinite manner: should the European Union accede, this would mean the ability to enforce protection in all EU member states as well as in the other states party to the Act.

To date, there are over 3,000 products registered within the Union by both EU and non-EU countries: examples of protected Italian products include Gorgonzola PDO, Grana Padano PDO and Barolo DOCG.

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