Swedish oat drink company Oatly has lost a long-running court battle over whether it can use the word “milk” to describe some of its products.
The firm has been in a legal battle with Dairy UK, the trade association for the UK dairy industry, for several years over whether its trademark for the phrase “Post Milk Generation” was invalid.
The row centred on whether the word “milk” could be used to describe oat-based products.
In 2023, the High Court allowed Oatly’s challenge against the decision of the Intellectual Property Office that the trademark was invalid, but this was overturned by the Court of Appeal in 2024.
Oatly took the case to the UK’s highest court in December last year, with its lawyers arguing that the trademark made clear there was no milk in the products.
Lawyers for Dairy UK argued that the trademark did not make clear that the product was milk-free, and instead referred to a group of consumers.
On Wednesday, five Supreme Court justices unanimously ruled that the trademark was invalid.
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The ruling said: “We consider that it is far from clear that that trademark is describing any characteristic of the contested products.
“Rather, on its face, it is focused on describing the targeted consumers and, in particular, those younger consumers who may be said to belong to a generation for whom there are, in contrast to past generations, widespread concerns about the production and consumption of milk.
“Insofar as it is describing a characteristic quality of the product, it is doing so in an oblique and obscure way and is certainly not doing so ‘clearly’.”
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The law states that the “designations” of “milk” and “milk products” can only be used for certain products.
Bryan Carroll, the general manager for Oatly UK & Ireland, said the company was “deeply disappointed” by the ruling, which he said “creates unnecessary confusion and an uneven playing field for plant-based products”.
