Vietnam to sue Chinese firm over coffee patent

The Vietnam Coffee and Cocoa Association (Vicofa) will sue a Chinese company for violating the copyright of Buon Ma Thuot coffee, Vicofa’s chairman Luong Van Tu told Tuoi Tre yesterday.
Tu said Vicofa would work with the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak to collect relevant documents to sue Guangzhou Buon Ma Thuot Co. Ltd. which has registered the two brand names “BUON MA THUOT” and “BUON MA THUOT COFFEE 1896” as an exclusive trademark in China for ten years.

Tu said BUON MA THUOT COFFEE was licensed to Dak Lak Province in 2010 by the Vietnam Intellectual Property Department. Buon Ma Thuot is also a geographical indication belonging to Vietnam.

According to lawyer Phung Thanh Son, the World Trade Organization defines geographical indications as place names used to identify the origin and quality, reputation or other characteristics of products.

“So the fact that a Chinese company patented the Vietnamese geographical indication could make international consumers confused about the real origin and characteristics of Vietnam’s own Buon Ma Thuot coffee products,” Son told Sai Gon Tiep Thi newspaper.

Son said such patenting is considered unhealthy competition, according to the Paris Convention for the Protection of Intellectual Property, of which both Vietnam and China are members.

He said according to this Convention, indications must not mislead the public as to the nature, the manufacturing process, the characteristics, and the suitability of a product.

Son said Vietnam could win this case.

Tags: Vietnam Coffee, Vietnam coffee prices

Posted by VBN on Sep 17 2011. Filed under Agriculture. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry