Mondelēz Sues British Chocolate Brand Over Vegan Toblerone

Mondelēz, the owner of Toblerone, is suing Catherine’s Originals, a small vegan chocolate brand from the UK, over the shape of its popular O’Bar.

The O’Bar features a chunky shape that can be broken into semi-oval segments. It has a different profile, appearance, and packaging from the triangular Toblerone.

In an email to customers earlier this week, Catherine’s Originals revealed that Kraft Foods Schweiz Holding GmbH, a Swiss holding company within the Mondelēz group, has alleged that the O’Bar infringes on Toblerone’s trademark rights and could also mislead people into believing there is a connection between the products.

As reported by the Guardian, Catherine Dodd, the founder of Catherine’s Originals, said, “We stand firmly behind the product and identity we’ve created.”

She added, “We strongly disagree with the claim concerning O’Bar and are working with our legal team to defend our position. Honestly, it’s fairly frightening for a small business we’ve put so much care and hard work into building. But being a smaller business does not mean being afraid to stand up for what we’ve created.”

‘That is despicable’

In the Vegan UK sub-Reddit, one user described the legal action against Catherine’s Originals as “despicable.” They said, “It is clearly not at all associated with Toblerone.”

Another wrote, “Terrible, will absolutely be supporting Catherine’s, ordered a couple or bars and finally pushed me to get the advent calendar too. Toblerone don’t even cater for the same demographic?!”

Mondelēz is the world’s biggest candy company and has an annual revenue of approximately USD $38.5 billion. Catherine’s Originals is an independent, award-winning chocolate brand founded in 2021 by Dodd, who was 18 years old at the time.

Stephen Lowry, legal advisor to Catherine’s Originals, said, “Our client disagrees with the claim and considers O’Bar to have its own distinctive design and identity. We look forward to addressing the matter through the appropriate legal process.”

Vegan brands and copyright lawsuits

Adobe Stock Several other small and independent vegan brands have also been sued by larger companies

In 2021, Oatly, the world’s largest oat milk brand, unsuccessfully sued Glebe Farm over its PUREOATY name and carton design. The judge ultimately rejected Oatly’s claims of infringement and “passing off,” and found no likelihood of confusion.

In 2014, Hellmann’s owner Unilever sued the plant-based brand Just Mayo, arguing that the egg-free recipe was misleading. Unilever later withdrew the lawsuit.

Both Oatly and Hellmann’s lawsuits generated negative publicity for the two companies, whereas the smaller brands they sued received significant public support. As reported by The Drum, 39 percent of social conversations linked to Oatly in the aftermath of the judgment were negative, and just 13 percent were positive.

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