Oatly can't use the word "milk" in its slogan

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

In the UK, Oatly have recently lost a court battle to use the word milk in its slogan (the) "post milk generation".

Vegan brands cannot use 'milk' in marketing, Supreme Court says

The dairy industry want milk to mean mammal milk. They're not insisting cow's milk from what I can tell. Likewise with cream, butter, and so on. But, oddly enough, there are exceptions to the rules, peanut butter can still be called peanut butter, but presumably hazelnut butter can't be, nor can pistachio butter (which often contains dairy, go figure) or Almond butter.

Similarly coconut cream and coconut milk (think tinned products here) and the unique to the UK cream of coconut sachets can also still use dairy terminology, but other newer products can't. Go figure.

This ruling raises eyebrows when one considers the long-standing exceptions allowed by the European Commission. Products like ‘coconut milk’ and ‘peanut butter’ have been granted a pass because they are considered ‘traditional’ and well-understood by consumers

I guess they think consumers are not very bright.

Having not been able to drink cow's milk from my early twenty's and having to have goat's milk instead, I have never had the generic assumption that milk = cow's milk.

Do you think almond milk or oat milk, cashew milk should be called something different or is the concept of dairy milk, cow's milk, sheep's milk, and goat's milk sufficiently clear that you'd not confuse them with almond milk, rice milk, coconut milk, and soy milk.

 

[badjak]

I don't mind much.
But just "milk" on its own, means cow milk to me.
The others are clear enough by what comes in front

 

[TastyReuben]

“Milk” by itself means milk from a cow to me, especially as I’m from a big dairy state where the milk lobby is strong. Things like “coconut milk” and “almond milk,” I’m smart enough to know that’s not from a cow (or any other mammal), so it doesn’t bother me. As long as I can tell at a glance what I’m buying so that I don’t come home with a surprise, I’m fine.

We had a similar case here several years ago with respect to the word “mayo” - a producer of a vegan mayonnaise product wanted to use the word “mayo” on their label without distinguishing it as vegan mayonnaise (except in the fine print), and so Big Mayonnaise sued them and won, IIRC.

 

[karadekoolaid]

Yeah, I'm not bothered really, because I only use cow's milk and coconut milk- which is what I've called them ever since I was young. Same with peanut butter, even though it's not made with churned cream.
Oat, almond, soy milk looks like milk, so I guess it's just identification by association.