The show revealed months ago that "Ventspils meat" and "Rezekne sausage" - both named after cities in Latvia - were in fact manufactured in Lithuania. The fact that becomes apparent when one reads the small print on the packaging, but not the main branding.
There's nothing wrong with Lithuanian meat, but it does mean consumers wishing to buy local goods or support local farmers might be less patriotic than they would like to think.
Gunta Evardsone of the Food Safety and Hygiene Department of the Ministry of Agriculture, , said that in February this year the Ministry of Agriculture held a meeting with the representatives of the Ministry of Justice and the Patent Office, after which "there was extensive discussion with lawyers, and we decided that it was necessary to continue the discussion by inviting The Consumer Rights Protection Center and also the Competition Council in order to assess whether this branding does not constitute unfair commercial practice."
Meanwhile other manufacturers are taking the opportunity of Latvia's centenary to appeal to patriotic purchasers. A good example is this 1.5 liter carton of milk made by Estonian company Alma, which in turn is owned by Finnish food group Valio.
