[norton]

So why not jump start their campaign by adding a requirement that all cheese include the nation of origin before listing the name - like "American Parmesan" versus "Italian Parmesan"?

Then institute the mother of all Buy American campaigns to shove their protectionism back down their throats!

[visualops]

Exactly. They know quite well that most food names have come to mean the type of cheese (or whatever), which includes looks, taste, production process, etc. Hence the difference, in any country, between 'domestic' and 'imported' items of the same type. The morons say it themselves by indicating cheddar is a generic name but parmesan is not?
The really idiotic thing is, do they really think we (or any other country) is going to pay some euroweenie a licensing fee to call a particular cheese Parmesan?
I'll add that I'm not sure what the person means regarding wine and liquor. Wines for instance may carry a regional name (Bordeaux, Rhine wines), but often they are named after the type of grape, doesn't matter where you grow it, such as Chardonnay.

[verity]

Would the term "Surrender Cheese" be appropriate for French exports?