DELHI HC - USING BOTTLES OF ANOTHER MANUFACTURER COMPANY IS PASSING OFF

The Delhi High Court restrained ‘Black Fort’ and ‘Power Cool’ beers from recycling bottles of Budweiser to sell their products. The HC held that the sale of any product with the recycled bottles of another manufacturer is passing off.

Anheuser-Busch LLC, the owner of Budweiser, filed a petition before the HC, contending that their manufactured bottles with Budweiser trademark embossed are being used by defendants to sell their beer brands after re-labeling. The defendants argued that the bottles come into their system through rag-pickers. They further said that a large number of bottles are cleaned, filled, and bottled, there may have been stray bottles of Budweiser that accidentally went into circulation.

The defendant submitted that they were willing to give an undertaking that they will not use the plaintiff's bottles for manufacturing or sale of their own beer.

In view of the undertaking, the plaintiff agreed not to press the relief of damages against the defendant.

However, Justice Prathiba M Singh said that a greater degree of supervision and random checks should be exercised at the manufacturing plant of the defendant company to ensure that the manufactured bottles do not bear the mark Budweiser.