The plant-based drink maker can no longer use the term 'milk' to market its products.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/43030335

Plant-based drink maker Oatly has lost a long-running legal battle over its use of the word “milk” in its marketing.

The Swedish company tried to trademark the slogan “post-milk generation” in the UK in 2021 but Dairy UK, the representative body for British dairy farmers, objected.

Following rulings in several courts, the UK Supreme Court on Wednesday said Oatly could neither trademark nor use the phrase “post-milk generation”.

The long-running dispute has centred on Dairy UK’s argument that, under trademark law, the term “milk” can only be used to refer to products that come from an animal.

  • CharlesDarwin@lemmy.worldEnglish
    4·
    2 hours ago

    Really though, do they have to call it milk? I mean what even is plant based milk? It isn’t milk. Are they that afraid of people knowing what they’re getting that they can’t call it what it is or give it a friendly name that doesn’t mean something it’s not?

    I find it really weird when Big Dairy (and Big Meat) are overly sensitive about what competing products call themselves.

    It’s not like people are going to get confused about what is what. Big Dairy just want to force people to name their product something unappealing.