The Administrative Board of the Northern Interregional Territorial Branch of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine (AMCU) has begun considering a case against Terrafood LLC (Terra-Food TM) for the production and distribution of a cheese product, the packaging design of which could mislead consumers .
As reported on the agency’s website on Thursday, the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine opened a case on a complaint from a consumer who purchased the Mozzaretta cheese product produced by Terrafood LLC, confusing it with traditional mozzarella cheese due to a similar inscription on the package and its design in the colors of the Italian flag.
“During the consideration of the application, it was found that the dominant inscription in the Latin Mozzaretta placed on the front side of the package, in particular, that the font of this inscription (the letters “TT” are visually similar to “LL”) may give the consumer an erroneous impression regarding the method of manufacture and composition of the product (…) and influence his intention to purchase the product of this enterprise,” the Committee said in a statement.
The AMCU recalled that real mozzarella cheese, in accordance with international standards, may contain starters from lactic and/or aromatic bacteria, cultures of harmless microorganisms, rennet or other safe milk-precipitating enzymes, salt substitute, vinegar, flour and crumbs, in some cases safe dyes , acidity regulators, stabilizers and preservatives.
At the same time, in the composition of the Mozzaretta product under the TM “Terra-Food”, in particular, fats of non-dairy origin were found, which contradicts Article 1 of the Law “On Milk and Dairy Products”.
Given the above, the actions of the manufacturer in terms of product packaging contain signs of a violation of the law “On Protection against Unfair Competition”, the Committee reported and added that consideration of the relevant case had begun.
GC “Terra Food” develops business in three sectors – dairy, meat and agriculture. It is one of the five largest producers of dairy products in the country.
The production capacity of 10 milk processing enterprises of the holding before the Russian invasion was 31,000 tons of cheese, 78,000 tons of butter and vegetable butter, and 61,000 tons of whole milk products per year.
More than 100 types of meat products of the group are produced at the Tulchinsk Meat Processing Plant – more than 6 thousand tons of products per year.
ANTIMONOPOLY COMMITTEE, TERRA FOOD
