According to the All-Goa Feni Bottlers and Distillers Association (AGFBDA), the popular brew is under threat and it can be patented by someone abroad if the Indian Government does not move quickly enough.

The AGFBDA has now filed an application seeking a Geological Indication Registration for feni which would prohibit the use of the name for a similar brew made anywhere else in the world. Similar registrations apply to Scotch whisky, Champagne and Basmati rice.

“We are in touch with the GI registering authority in Chennai and the state Government has assigned the science and technology department to be the formal applicant on behalf of the feni industry of Goa,” AGFBDA chief Mac Vaz said. Vaz said the move would help Goan cultivators to obtain registration under the WTO.

In Goa, about 4,000-odd small scale industrial units are engaged in cultivating cashew and brewing feni. “We have forwarded the draft proposal to the registration body in Chennai while other related documents are pending with the state science and technology department,” Vaz said.

The feni industry wants the brew to be reclassified as Indian-made Goan liquor, instead of the present classification of country liquor. “People are scared to try country liquor for fear of adulteration. Feni is not adulterated,” Vaz said.

The association has also asked the Government to maintain a strict watch on the quality of feni produced in the state. Goa produces eight lakh litres of cashew feni and a smaller amount of coconut palm feni annually.

Assistant Commissioner of Excise S Y Parab said except in Sattari, Valpoi, Canacona and Quepem, feni production is on the decline.

However, industry sources said feni distillation will receive a boost if it received a patent. Both Goa and the Centre provide subsidy to the tune of Rs 7000 per hectare to cashew cultivators in Goa.