Scotch Whisky achieves trademark certification in South Africa

By Lisa Riley

Published: 06 August, 2018

The Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) has successfully registered ‘Scotch Whisky’ as a certification trademark in South Africa.

The registration in South Africa, the seventh largest Scotch Whisky market by volume according to the SWA, marked a milestone for Scotland’s national drink in its largest export market in Africa, and one of the largest in the world, said chief executive Karen Betts.

“This registration offers Scotch Whisky a greater degree of legal protection and will allow us to prosecute rogue traders who seek to cash-in on the heritage, craft and quality of genuine Scotch,” she said.

The legal protection of Scotch was another step towards the continued success of the spirit, which is gaining traction in South Africa - exports rose 20.7% to £144 million in 2017, she added.

“Consumers can enjoy Scotch Whisky confident that South Africa stands behind Scotch Whisky as a Scottish product, produced according to traditional methods.”

Scotch Whisky is one of the first foreign registrations in South Africa with protection.

Last week, The SWA announced Scotch Whisky tourism had soared in 2017 with a record number of visitors from across the world visiting the country’s distilleries throughout the year.

The total number of visitors increased 11.4% to a record 1.9 million, with the highest number of visitors from Germany and the US followed by India, China and Japan.

In addition, spending at visitor centres was up 15.6% to £60.9 million.

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