French village sees its special knife label status rejected

Indication géographique protégée (IGP) status for Laguiole pocket knives made in Thiers, Puy-de-Dôme, was wrongly granted, a French court has ruled. 

The town is too far from the village of Laguiole, in neighbouring Aveyron department, for the IGP status to hold. 

The decision brings an end to the dispute between knife-makers in Thiers and Laguiole, unless Thiers decides to appeal, and it has until mid-September to lodge one with France’s highest court. 

The ruling by the Aix-en-Provence appeal court “has made everyone very happy”, Laguiole mayor Vincent Alazard told The Connexion. 

“It sets out, we hope once and for all, that Laguiole knives have to come from Laguiole.” 

Thiers mayor Stéphane Rodier did not respond to a request for an interview. 

You can read more about the knives from Lagouile in our 2021 article below. 

Read more: The French village whose pocket knives are a cut above

What caused the dispute?

The two communes, separated by 200km, both have a long knife-making tradition and, according to Thiers, they have been making knives called Laguiole since the distinctive knife was invented in the early 19th Century. 

Laguiole residents claim the knife earned its name because it was first made in their village. 

Around 250 of the 1,300 inhabitants there are employed in the knifemaking industry. In Thiers, which has a population of 11,633, around 400 people are employed in knife-making. 

Laguiole sought IGP status for Couteau de Laguiole to protect the origin of its knives, while the town of Thiers issued a counter-request for IGP status for Couteau Laguiole. 

 Read more: What are IGP/AOC/AOP labels on French products?

The importance of being awarded IGP status was highlighted after a flood of cheap Laguiole-stamped knives arrived in Europe from Asia in the 1990s. 

This led one importer to claim the name Laguiole as a trade name. 

He was defeated in the courts over the goods only in 2019. 

Status give protection, but highlights political rupture

Mr Alazard said he was not worried that the loss of the IGP status would open the flood gates again for foreign imports. 

“If anything, it gives us even more protection because it sets out in law, again, the link between Laguiole and the knives that have its name,” he said. 

He added that if Thiers does not appeal, the local syndicate of knife-makers might apply again to the body that decides IGPs for a Couteau de Laguiole IGP. 

As well as being an industrial battle, the knife fight also has political overtones. 

Carole Delga, president of Occitanie regional council, is a socialist giving her high-profile support to Laguiole. 

Thiers is in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, which has right-wing leader Laurent Wauquiez as its president. 

He supported the idea of a wider IGP. “We deplore the decision of the court,” a spokeswoman said. 

“The overturned IGP reflected the historic and economic reality of the manufacture of Laguiole knives for 150 years. Co-operation between the two manufacturing centres is, and always has been, the driving force behind the success of Laguiole knives, and it is impossible to pitch one centre against another," she said.

“It is thanks to our combined efforts that Laguiole has become one of the most emblematic knives made in France."

“Around Thiers, there are 400 jobs and €43million in sales from the sector. Businesses that make parts of the knives locally make up half of the overall sales, and 80% of imports,” the spokeswoman added.

 In 2022, Ms Delga said: “For nearly two centuries, the notoriety and quality of Laguiole knives has been important for our region and for its economy.”

She did not comment after the ruling.

Read more: Is it illegal to carry a pocket knife in France?