No cloudy business: Aldi did not infringe Thatchers’ trademark over lemon cider
Aldi did not infringe on Thatchers’ trademark with its cider lemon drink, a judge ruled today, bringing a sigh of relief to the low-cost supermarket’s busy legal team.
The English cider brand launched legal action against Aldi back in September 2022 over its cloudy lemon cider. Thatchers called on South West law firm Stephens Scown while Aldi instructed City law firm Freeths.
Thatchers claimed that the German food stored infringed on its trademarks by creating and selling its Taurus drink that was a cloudy cider lemon.
The drinks company launched its canned cloudy lemon cider product in February 2020 while Aldi created its own Taurus in May 2022.
Thatchers pleaded that the overall appearance of Aldi cloudy lemon cider is highly similar to that of the its own cloudy lemon cider.
One of the issues the cider company pointed out in court was the colour palette of yellows and greens and the background of creamy-yellow, arguing that it adds to the likelihood of confusion.
Aldi defended its colour palette by stating it is ubiquitous to lemon-flavoured drinks. The judge was satisfied with this, ruling “it is not surprising that both parties have used it to distinguish their lemon cider product”.
The court ruled today that there is no likelihood of confusion between the brands. The court dismissed Thatchers’ claim against Aldi.
The supermarket has been battling a few trademark issues over the years including this week as its legal team are at the Court of Appeal over a light up gin bottle with gold flakes.
Aldi seems to be a concern for Marks and Spencer as the chain has sued Aldi over a line of gin and the lookalike version of its Colin the Caterpillar cake.
Commenting on todays ruling, an Aldi spokesperson said: “There’s nothing cloudy about this judgement. It’s clear cut. Aldi exclusive brands are just that: exclusive to Aldi while leading the market on quality and price.”
Martin Thatcher, managing director of Thatchers Cider said: “As a Somerset family expertly crafting cider for 120 years, we were compelled to bring this case as we were concerned that the packaging of international retailer Aldi’s product was misleading shoppers due to the strong resemblance to Thatchers cloudy lemon cider.”
“We’re disappointed that the judge didn’t agree with us. Despite the decision not going our way, we still believe taking this action was the right thing to do. We care about creating the perfect cider and thanks to a proud history of four generations of expert cider makers innovating and investing, we have done just that.
“So we will continue to innovate, producing premium ciders that people want to buy and enjoy,” he added.