Soy sauce maker sues over firm's 'misleading' name
    By Zhang Zhao (China Daily)
    Updated: 2012-06-13

    Soy sauce maker sues over firm's 'misleading' name

    Hai Tian alleges its sales are affected by its competitor's scandal. [Photo/China Daily]

    The largest soy sauce manufacturer in China recently filed a lawsuit against the already scandal-wracked Weiji Seasoning Food Co Ltd, accusing it of using a "misleading" name that could cause confusion between the companies.

    Hai Tian Flavoring & Food Co Ltd, based in Foshan, Guangdong province, is seeking 10 million yuan ($1.6 million) in damages in a case against Weiji, which came under fire last month after media reports came out alleging it made more than 10,000 boxes of soy sauce using 760 tons of salt water meant for industrial use.

    Although it was discovered after investigation that only 90 boxes of the adulterated soy sauce were produced, the public's outrage was hard to contain, given that soy sauce is one of the most commonly used spices in a Chinese kitchen.

    Hai Tian also saw its reputation tarnished by the incident because its soy sauce trademark shares the same name as the Weiji company, though Weiji produces its product under the brand name Weiding. Also, the companies are located a very short distance away from each other.

    Hai Tian made announcements on the Internet and held a press conference on May 24 to claim it has no connection with the other company.

    "The involved company reportedly has an annual production capacity of only 80,000 boxes of soy sauce, while at Hai Tian, one single production line can produce 4,000 boxes in just an hour," said Ye Yanqiao, general manager of Hai Tian's production center.

    Zhang Xin, the brand manager of Hai Tian, added that the trademark Weiji was registered in 1994, four years before Weiji Seasoning Food Co Ltd was founded.

    The general manager of Weiji, Zhang Yuhua, also pointed out that his company and Hai Tian are two independent companies.

    "Hai Tian is an industry leader. We have no official contact with Hai Tian, nor are we their OEM factory," Zhang told Xinkuaibao, a local Guangdong newspaper.

    Hai Tian claimed that they suffered great losses because of the Weiji scandal. According to its suit, the company lost more than 8 million yuan in sales revenue in nine days after the news was unveiled.

    In Carrefour supermarkets in Shenzhen, the sales of Hai Tian's soy sauce declined by 25 to 50 percent on May 22, according to the suit.

    Lin Cunbao, a lawyer at Guangdong Baohui Law Firm, said it is "difficult to judge whether it is illegal for Weiji to use a trademark owned by Hai Tian as its company name".

    "We cannot rule out the possibility that Weiji has chosen the name on purpose to gain benefits on the market, but the management of trademarks and company names are two systems," he explained.

    zhangzhao@chinadaily.com.cn



    The J-Innovation

    Steve Jobs died the month that the latest Nobel Prize winners were announced. The coincidence lends itself to speculation about inevitability.

    Recommendation of Global IP Service Agencies with Chinese Business

    Washable keyboard

    The future of China & WTO

    JETRO: A decade of development in China

    国产精品免费无遮挡无码永久视频| 亚洲欧美日韩、中文字幕不卡| 超清无码无卡中文字幕| 亚洲av无码乱码国产精品fc2| 欧美视频中文字幕| 蜜臀av无码人妻精品| 特级无码毛片免费视频尤物 | 亚洲av永久无码精品表情包| 在线中文字幕av| 中文字幕 亚洲 有码 在线| 国产精品无码成人午夜电影| 国产成人无码精品久久久性色 | yy111111电影院少妇影院无码| 无码精品A∨在线观看十八禁| 痴汉中文字幕视频一区| 中文无码人妻有码人妻中文字幕| 无码超乳爆乳中文字幕久久| 在线观看片免费人成视频无码 | 熟妇人妻中文a∨无码| 久久精品aⅴ无码中文字字幕重口| 午夜精品久久久久久久无码| 国产精品无码久久久久| 国产AV无码专区亚洲Av| 办公室丝袜激情无码播放| 亚洲AV成人无码久久精品老人| 免费无码H肉动漫在线观看麻豆 | 精品日韩亚洲AV无码一区二区三区| 中文字幕日韩一区二区三区不卡| 亚洲中文字幕无码永久在线 | 国产中文字幕在线视频| 亚洲精品中文字幕乱码三区 | 久久久久亚洲AV无码观看| 亚洲日韩在线中文字幕综合| 无码av中文一二三区| 欧美成人中文字幕在线看| 中文字幕亚洲一区| 国产啪亚洲国产精品无码| 亚洲AV永久无码精品网站在线观看| 亚洲熟妇无码另类久久久| 无码人妻黑人中文字幕| 国产日韩精品中文字无码|