The Greek Cypriot government that had previously presented the Turkish sugary pastry Baklava and being Greek have now registered Turkish delight as “Cyprus lokumi.”
The Greek Cypriot Ministry of Agriculture made declared that the production of the sweet is not possible under the name of “lokum” in any European Union member state unless they are first granted permission by Greek Cyprus.
Cyprus Lokumi
Greek Minister of Agriculture Fotis Fotiou said: “We asked for the lokum trademark many moths ago and the period for objection expired on Oct. 21 so lokum will be known as Cyprus Lokumi in European Union countries. It will not be called 'Turkish delight' anymore,” he said.
Fotiu added that there are certain geographical standards for the goods in the EU Fotiou: ''There will be a big boost in our sales because we gained the rights of the trademark. Every country has to receive a production permit from the Greek Ministry of Agriculture. There are no barriers to call it 'Cyprus Lokumi.' We can say that lokum is a taste from Greece without any doubts.”
The Giroskipu Municipality in Greek Cyprus broke the world record three years ago by producing a giant lokum that weighed 2,718 kilograms. The Greeks put their names into the Guinness Book of Records and 35 chefs prepared the huge lokum using 150 kilograms of almond, 2.5 tones of sugar, 350 kilograms of oil. It was prepared in 40 hours.