According to a preliminary decision, Nestlé violated the Impossible Burger trademark, registered in the European Union last year, by calling the product Incredible Burger. The court said that the words “impossible” and “incredible” sounded and looked similar, and the overlap could confuse customers.
“This temporary decision disappointed us, because we believe that everyone should be able to use descriptive terms like ‘incredible’ that describe the qualities of a product,” Nestlé said in a statement. Said. “Of course, we will adhere to this decision, but we will appeal in parallel.”
Nestlé said he was preparing to start a new hamburger recipe using the “Sensational” identifier. It will apply this name to all products that previously used the word “Incredible” in Europe, including imitation meatballs that have become “Sensational Burger”. The company uses the Awesome Burger brand in the USA.
Nestlé approached Impossible Foods in the summer of 2018 to negotiate a possible licensing agreement on Impossible Burger, according to a decision stating the legal applications made by Impossible Foods.
The court, the global food giant, announced the launch of the Incredible Burger while these negotiations were ongoing, and raised the suspicion that the “Impossible Burger” in Europe is trying to disappoint its successful launch. “
Nestlé, who previously wanted to declare the Impossible Burger brand, launched Incredible Burger in Europe in 2019. Under the brand of Garden Gourmet. This was followed by the launch of Awesome Burger in the USA in September. According to the decision, Impossible Foods wrote a warning to Nestlé USA in January 2019 stating that the Incredible Burger violated the American Impossible Burger brand.
The beginning of the U.S. took measures similar to Nestlé in the regional German courts last year, but withdrew after the courts said they would not be given them.
Impossible Foods said in a statement that he applauded efforts to develop plant-based products, but did not want consumers to be confused. “We are grateful that the court appreciates the importance of our trademarks and supports our efforts to protect our brand against the violation of a strong multinational giant,” said chief lawyer Dana Wagner. Said.
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