Mondelez International, a well-known snack food company, has filed a lawsuit against Aldi, accusing the supermarket chain of copying the packaging designs of its popular products like Chips Ahoy, Wheat Thins, and Oreos.
The federal lawsuit, filed Tuesday in Illinois, claims that Aldi’s store-brand packaging is so similar to Mondelez’s that it is likely to mislead and confuse customers. Mondelez argues that this copying could cause irreparable damage to its brands and is seeking both financial compensation and a court order to stop Aldi from selling these allegedly infringing products.
Aldi, based in Batavia, Illinois for its U.S. operations, has not yet responded to requests for comment.
The lawsuit includes side-by-side comparisons of products, highlighting similarities such as Aldi’s Thin Wheat crackers, which come in a gold box closely resembling Mondelez’s Wheat Thins. Aldi’s chocolate sandwich cookies and Oreos both use blue packaging, while its Golden Round crackers and Mondelez’s Ritz crackers are both sold in red boxes.
Founded in Germany, Aldi is known for keeping prices low by primarily offering private-label products. It is one of the fastest-growing grocery chains in the United States, operating more than 2,500 stores across 39 states. Recently, Aldi announced that its current chief operating officer, Atty McGrath, will become CEO of Aldi U.S. starting September 1.
This is not Aldi’s first legal battle over packaging. Last year, an Australian court ruled that Aldi’s packaging for Baby Bellies snack puffs, which featured a cartoon owl and similar colors, infringed on copyright. Earlier this year, a U.K. appeals court sided with Thatchers, a cider company, in a case against Aldi for packaging design similarities involving its lemon cider.
According to Mondelez, the company had repeatedly reached out to Aldi about the confusingly similar packaging. While Aldi did change or discontinue packaging on some products, others continue to be sold in their current form.
The lawsuit also accuses Aldi of infringing on Mondelez’s trade dress rights with regard to the packaging of Nutter Butter and Nilla Wafers cookies, as well as its Premium cracker brand.
