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The Government of Cyprus have failed in the courts to annul the trade mark ‘Grilloumi’ despite holding a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO).
A PDO protects the name of a product and allows restrictions on who can use the name and apply the name on certain products, to prevent misuse and imitation. By obtaining the PDO, this means that only halloumi made within Cyprus in line with the specification can be sold under the name ‘Halloumi’.
Since the granting of the PDO in April 2021, Cyprus have sought to take action against copycats.
This current case involves a Swedish version of the cheese sold under the name ‘Grilloumi’.
The Swedish company successfully registered a trade mark in the EU for ‘Grilloumi’ in 2016. This registration was challenged by Cyprus in 2017 on the basis of the national trade mark they held for the word ‘Halloumi’ as the PDO had not yet been granted.
This appeal was initially rejected by the EU Intellectual Property Office in 2018 and a further appeal was rejected by the Fourth Appellate Court.
In 2022, Cyprus filed a claim with the European Court of Justice to overturn the decision, on the basis that the previous decisions involved a misjudgement in respect of the distinctiveness of the marks.
Unfortunately for Cyprus, they have been hit with another loss.
The EU Court of Justice dismissed the claim and stated that there is no significant risk of brand name confusion between “Grilloumi” and Halloumi. On this basis, the “Grilloumi” remains registered.
This is a blow and puts a question mark over the effectiveness of the PDO for Halloumi. Time will tell if this is the end of the matter.
If you would like to discuss how to protect your mark, please get in touch with the Trademarkroom team today.
