The Ministry of Ayush has asked the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks not to register the acronym 'Ayush' as a trademark which is used by the FMCG giant.
The Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (AYUSH) has asked the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks not to register the acronym as a trademark, according to a report by The Economic Times.
The decision could affect fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) giant Hindustan Unilever (HUL), which also sells natural, Ayurvedic products such as toothpaste and soaps. HUL has been selling such products under the ‘Lever Ayush’ brand for two years now.
A ministry spokesperson told the newspaper, “HUL has applied for registration of trademark Ayush, which, if granted, may lead to confusion among general public.”
According to the report, the consumer goods company has claimed that it had acquired the Ayush brand around two decades ago while the ministry was formed in 2014.
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The report cites analysts suggesting that the ministry could be referring to the Lever Ayush brand, for which the trademark is still pending.
The Ayush brand was first registered in 1987 by Jayalakshmi Oil & Chemical Industries while the trademark was sold to HUL in 2001, the report suggested. HUL had started selling the natural beauty products in 2001.
The company had separately applied to register Lever Ayush Plus Therapy in 2007 and the Lever Ayush Device in 2017, the report added. “Lever Ayush is exclusively associated with HUL and we have been using this mark even before the AYUSH Ministry was formed,” an HUL spokesperson said.
The FMCG giant said it had independently adopted the brand name Lever Ayush in 2000 and has launched products under that brand, the report added.