For a second time, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) has granted Frito-Lay North America’s petition for cancellation of Snyder’s-Lance Inc.’s application to trademark “Pretzel Crisps,” finding the term is generic. Frito-Lay N. Am.v. Princeton-Vanguard, LLC, No. 91195552 (TTAB, entered September 6, 2017). TTAB initially found “pretzel crisp” to be generic following Frito-Lay’s opposition to the application, but the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit vacated and remanded the decision, holding that TTAB had used an incorrect legal standard for its opinion.

On remand, TTAB first considered the genericness of the individual terms then analyzed the whole term, again finding that “the primary significance of the term in the minds of the consuming public is to identify a product rather than to identify a single producer of that product, and that indeed the ‘Pretzel Crisps’ product may derive from more than one source.” In addition, TTAB ruled that Snyder’s-Lance failed to establish that the mark had acquired distinctiveness.

About The Author

For decades, manufacturers, distributors and retailers at every link in the food chain have come to Shook, Hardy & Bacon to partner with a legal team that understands the issues they face in today's evolving food production industry. Shook attorneys work with some of the world's largest food, beverage and agribusiness companies to establish preventative measures, conduct internal audits, develop public relations strategies, and advance tort reform initiatives.

1 Comment

  1. […] filed a lawsuit in North Carolina federal court appealing a Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) ruling that found the term “Pretzel Crisps” to be generic, arguing that TTAB “failed to consider all […]

Comments are closed.

Close