Sustainable Tourism Law

516 SUSTAINABLE TOURISM LAW together with human and natural factors, give the product protected by the AO the quality and speciality that distinguish it from others of its kind. In short, appellations of origin should guarantee and protect three different types of interests (Ceballos, 2017), which are: 1) The interests of the producers making up the AO, as opposed to unfair commercial practices and uses by third parties. 2) The interests of consumers, with respect to the characteristics, quality and origin of products. 3) The public interests of the community in the territory covered by the appellation of origin, through the satisfaction of collective aspirations and needs. Although the majority of the doctrine has not delved into the public dimension of this legal figure, some authors (e.g. López, 1996 and Ceballos, 2017) have claimed their role in promoting the territory and their capacity to transmit cultural values in the form of positive externalities. This line of thought, developed from Administrative Law, aims to transcend the commercial conceptualization of this legal institution. This way, the aim is to enrich the traditional functions, centred on guaranteeing the interests of entrepreneurs and consumers, and to ensure those of the inhabitants of the territory covered by the AO. In this sense, the AO, rather than providing information on the origin and quality of a given product, would represent the public cultural capital of the area, and could therefore be an instrument for the sustainable development of the territory. As early as the 1990s, the CAP focused on food quality and measures were taken to protect traditional and regional foods (European Union, 2012). During this period, it was proposed at European level that the AO should fulfil the following functions: 1) To support the development of local systems, human and natural resources present in a given territory, traditions and customs of local communities. 2) To promote a more balanced relationship in the agri-food sector through the development of local activities that occupy sectors appreciated by the most sophisticated consumers. In this respect, tourism could play an important role. (3) To maintain local skills and knowledge, particularly in local activities related to multifunctional agriculture.