Oatly may no longer use the word “milk” in its marketing in the United Kingdom. The country’s Supreme Court has now confirmed this in an appeal case that began around a year ago.

The Swedish producer of oat-based drinks, Oatly, and Dairy UK have been locked in a long-running legal dispute after Oatly sought to trademark the slogan “Post Milk Generation”. Dairy UK – which is an industry organisation representing the UK dairy sector – argues that the slogan breaches both UK trademark rules and Article 78(2) of EU Regulation No. 1308/2013, which reserves dairy designations for products made from animal milk.

The UK Supreme Court has now ruled in favour of the industry organisation. As a result, Oatly may not use the word “milk” to market its plant-based products in the country. This also means that the company may neither use nor register the slogan “Post Milk Generation” as a trademark.

• It was necessary for the Supreme Court to decide, once and for all, whether a plant-based milk alternative can be called ‘milk’ and marketed as such. And the outcome is not what Oatly had hoped for,” says Laurie Bray, a senior associate and trademark lawyer at the European intellectual property firm Withers & Rogers, in comments to The Guardian. The remarks are cited by the Swedish agricultural news outlet Jordbruksaktuellt.
• This is an important ruling for the sector, because it finally brings clarity on how dairy terms can – and cannot – be used in branding and marketing. It provides greater certainty for businesses and helps ensure that established dairy terms continue to have a clear meaning for consumers, while allowing appropriate descriptions to be used where the law permits, says Judith Bryans, chief executive of the industry body Dairy UK.

Oatly, by contrast, believes the ruling will hamper competition.

• This decision creates unnecessary confusion and an uneven playing field for plant-based products, says Bryan Carroll, managing director of Oatly UK & Ireland.

By Lene Walsh Mikkelsen
Source: Jordbruksaktuelt.se
Photo: Oatly