The EU General Court has confirmed a European Commission decision finding that German company Dextro Energy's health claims for its glucose supplements are contrary to the messages of national and international authorities on the health risks associated with sugar consumption. The commission decided the issue in January 2015 despite advice from the European Food Safety Authority suggesting that the consumption of glucose could be linked to normal energy-yielding metabolism. "Even if those health claims were to be authorised only subject to specific conditions of use and/or were accompanied by additional messages or warnings, the Commission considered that the message nevertheless remained confusing for consumers, with the result that the claims in question should not be authorised," stated a March 16, 2016, press release from the General Court summarizing the opinion. Issue 598
Category Archives Global Courts
The Supreme Court of Spain has reportedly dismissed a challenge brought by the Comité Interprofessionel Du Vin de Champagne alleging that Champín, a Spanish fruit-flavored soft drink, infringes the organization’s protected-designation-of-origin rights. The organization asserted that Champín could be confused with Champagne, which may only describe sparkling wines made in that region. The court disagreed, finding that “Champín differs enough with respect to those products protected by the Champagne appellation that the phonetic similarity does not evoke the product.” See The Local, March 10, 2016. Issue 597
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has reportedly affirmed a ruling that Spanish citrus growers must label their fruits when they have used chemicals or preservatives in post-harvest processing. Spain challenged the European Commission’s (EC’s) power to enact the rule, arguing the U.N. Economic Commission for Europe had set voluntary standards only. The lower court noted that even though the EC must consider U.N. standards, it is not required to adopt those guidelines, reasoning that the ECJ reportedly echoed in its ruling. Spain also argued that the rule created an unconstitutional distinction between citrus growers and growers of other fruit, but the lower court found that citrus fruit is often subjected to higher levels of chemical processing and that citrus peels are used differently than the peels of other fruits and vegetables because they are often added to food for additional flavor. See Wall Street Journal, March 3, 2016. …
An Alberta court has reportedly approved a settlement agreement in a class action stemming from an E. coli outbreak that resulted in the recall of nearly 4 million pounds of beef in Canada and the United States, amounting to the largest meat recall in Canadian history. Harrison v. XL Foods Inc., No. 1203-14727 (Can. Alta. Q.B., order entered February 17, 2016). Under the settlement agreement, the class is open to consumers in Canada and the United States who either purchased XL Foods Inc.’s beef, thereby suffering an economic injury, or consumed it, causing them to contract an illness. Eligible class members can receive a full refund with proof of purchase or CAN $25 without. See CBC News, February 17, 2016. Issue 595
A Shanghai court has reportedly fined three Chinese technology companies for their part in spreading rumors that KFC fare is produced with “mutant chickens” with eight legs and six wings. KFC filed a lawsuit in June 2015 seeking damages for economic losses and damage to its reputation. The court reportedly ordered the companies to make an official apology and pay a total of $91,191 (600,000 yuan) to KFC. Additional details about the lawsuit appear in Issue 567 of this Update. See Reuters, February 2, 2016. Issue 593
The Philippine Supreme Court has reportedly invalidated a 2002 governmental regulation allowing the import of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) after Greenpeace and a farmer's group challenged the field testing of a GMO eggplant (talong). The ruling affirms a lower court's 2013 decision finding "no full scientific certainty yet as to the effects of Bt talong field trials to the environment and to the health of the people" and noting that existing regulations did not do enough to protect Philippine environment and health. "This decision builds on a wave of countries in Europe rejecting [genetically engineered (GE)] crops, and is a major setback for the GE industry,” said a Greenpeace Philippines spokesperson in a December 11, 2015, press release. "The Philippines has been used as a model for GE regulatory policy around the world, but now we are finally making progress to give people a right to choose the food they…
The World Trade Organization’s (WTO’s) Appellate Body has affirmed an April 2015 ruling that U.S. tuna regulations discriminate against Mexico by requiring “dolphin-safe” labels reflecting the methods used to catch the fish that protect against capture of the mammal. In response to the appellate ruling, the United States criticized the decision as focusing on points that Mexico had not challenged and were merely “hypothetical” and an “academic exercise.” “Panels and the Appellate Body should not make their conception of the ‘perfect’ measure the enemy of all the possible good ones,” according to the U.S. statement provided during the meeting of the WTO Dispute Settlement Body on December 3, 2015. “In pursuing legitimate objectives, Members should not be held to the impossible standard of designing and applying a measure that corresponds exactly to the one that a panel or the Appellate Body would have designed to achieve the legitimate objective at…
A German court has reportedly ordered the city of Hamburg to compensate a Spanish vegetable grower falsely linked to a 2011 E. coli outbreak that sickened more than 4,000 people in 16 countries. Vegetable cooperative Frunet asserted that it suffered €2.3 million in damages as a result of its incorrect identification as the source of the outbreak, which was later traced to fenugreek sprouts. The amount of the award has not been confirmed. See Think Spain, October 25, 2015. Meanwhile, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has affirmed a lower court’s decision that the government does not owe tomato growers compensation after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) publicly attributed a 2008 Salmonella outbreak to red tomatoes, then later traced it to jalapeno and serrano peppers. DiMare Fresh, Inc. v. U.S., No. 15-5006 (Fed. Cir., order entered October 28, 2015). “The problem with the Tomato Producers’ contention…
The Finnish Market Court has reportedly backed MS Iceland Dairies in a legal dispute with Arla Foods over the sale of skyr dairy products in Finland. According to media reports, the court ruled that “skyr” is not a generic term for a yogurt-like cultured dairy product, but rather a specific trademark for a product made in Iceland or Denmark according to recipes held by MS Iceland Dairies. The decision bars Arla Foods from marketing or selling skyr in Finland, with violations fetching fines of €500,000. See Iceland Monitor, October 7, 2015; FoodBev.com, October 13, 2015. Issue 582
The European Union’s General Court has rejected an appeal to register “Halloumi” and its Greek alphabet equivalent as Community Trade Marks, deeming the terms descriptive of the cheese product. Republic of Cyprus v. Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Mkt., Nos. T-292/14 and T-293/14 (Gen. Ct., order entered October 7, 2015). The application would have granted trademark protection for “Halloumi” within the European Union. Halloumi is set to receive Protected Designation of Origin status as a cheese produced on the island of Cyprus after the European Commission published the application to register the name in July 2015. As a trademark, however, the term is merely descriptive of the cheese product, the court found. “[T]he applicant acknowledges that the marks applied for have always been perceived by Cypriot consumers and by consumers across the European Union as referring to a particular type of cheese exported from Cyprus, made in a certain…
