Ornua has confirmed that a US trademark case it had taken against a New Zealand dairy company has been resolved.
The case, which was filed on December 30, in the US District Court in northern California, centred around the packaging used by Westland Milk Products, for its Westgold butter.
Ornua had claimed that the packaging of Westland’s butter products infringed on the Kerrygold trademark because of its similarities.
Both wrappers featured gold-coloured packaging, cows and the words “grass-fed”.
Trademark
The Dublin-headquartered co-op had claimed that Westland’s packaging was “confusingly similar to Ornua’s federally registered Kerrygold trademarks and trade dress”.
Westland had lodged a counterclaim in the US alleging that Ornua’s motion for a preliminary injunction was anti-competitive behaviour.
The US District Court said that both parties agreed to dismiss the case on March 24.
A spokesperson for Ornua has confirmed to Agriland that “the litigation has been resolved on a confidential basis”.
Kerrygold is “the number one imported butter and the number two butter overall” in the US, according to Ornua.
The brand, which reached a record €1 billion in global retail sales in 2019, was first established in 1962.
Butter
Richard Wyeth, chief executive of Westland Milk Products, previously said that the company was “pleased” that the US court had “confirmed our right to continue with our planned sales plans for Westgold butter in the US”.
In February, Westland Milk Products unveiled new packaging for its salted and unsalted butter.
“Westgold is changing its packaging, across all products, to build consumer awareness of the brand, as well as differentiating Westgold from other brands, and to showcase its quality, both locally and in international markets,” the company said.
Westland added that “the new look packaging follows two years of research to better understand consumers’ purchase drivers and the trends in food consumption”.
The company surpassed the NZ$1 billion annual revenue mark for the first time in its 85-year history in 2022, posting record sales and a NZ$120 million rebound in profit compared to the previous year.