Nestle, Amul locked in row over trademark

Nestle India and Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), which markets its dairy products under the brand 'Amul', are locked in a row over a trademark.

GCMMF has alleged trademark infringement by Nestle when it launched milk and yoghurt under brand name A+ in December, sources privy to development said.

Amul has claimed that is has been selling cheese under the brand 'Amul A+' for the past one year and high calcium milk labelled as 'Amul Calci+' for the last four years, they said.

"We are not commenting on the issue as negotiations are still underway with Nestle India over the trademark infringement issue," a top GCMMF functionary said on the condition of anonymity.

An e-mail sent to Nestle India did not solicit any response.

A Nestle India official who requested anonymity, however, said, "We are in talks with Amul over the alleged infringement of trademark, which we had purchased from North India.

"The A+ brand is legally assigned to us in accordance with accepted practices. We are currently in discussions with Amul and prefer not to comment further."

Neither of the two leading dairy product marketing giants has moved court on the issue. They are still in dialogue and seeking an amicable solution to it through negotiations, according to sources.