Yogurt brand Chobani urged a federal judge this week to dismiss a lawsuit by Danone, the parent company of rival U.S. yogurt brand Dannon, that alleges Chobani copied the packaging and the slogan “Bright & Mellow” for a competing ready-to-drink cold-brew coffee line, Reuters reported.
Danone, which sells cold brew it calls “Bold & Smooth,” accused Chobani of “knowing, calculated, and systematic” trademark infringement for selling La Colombe coffee, saying La Colombe’s yellow-and-black packaging looks similar to Danone’s SToK coffee and would confuse consumers.
In a filing late Monday in federal court in Manhattan, according to Reuters, Chobani says it used “bright” and “mellow” fairly. Chobani said the are words generic terms that describe flavors coffee drinkers might expect and that they cannot be trademarked, the report said.
Reuters writes: “Chobani also said consumers could use ‘Bright & Mellow’ to distinguish that variety of SToK coffee from ‘Bold & Smooth’ and ‘Extra Bold’ varieties. It said there was no evidence that consumers associated the phrase with Danone.”
Chobani said, according to the report: “The term ‘Bright & Mellow’ simply tells consumers that the La Colombe product is a bright and mellow coffee. Danone’s lawsuit is an opportunistic attempt to weaponize trademark law against a superior competitor.”
Danone’s U.S. subsidiary said in a statement, “We stand by our SToK Cold Brew packaging and the brand we have built across our portfolio.”