How blaa made its mark in Europe

IT HAS tickled the taste buds of Waterford residents for over 300 years, and now the EU has given it a new legal protection against imitators.

A ruling by Brussels means the floury bread roll, soft or crusty, can be called by its famous name blaa only if made in the city and county of Waterford and part of adjoining south Kilkenny.

The Waterford blaa reportedly dates back to the arrival in Ireland of French Huguenots escaping religious persecution during the 1690s.