Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Big Mayo Files Lawsuit Against Food-Tech Startup Hampton Creek

eatdrinkpolitics.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

11–20 of 39 posts

Re: Big Mayo Files Lawsuit Against Food-Tech Startup Hampton Creek

#11

Post by [deleted] »

entee wrote: post #3
debacle wrote: post #2

Upvoted for "big mayo" reference, but this is a pretty obvious case of severe editorial slant. > Now it’s true that FDA’s "standard of identity" (i.e., definition) for mayonnaise includes eggs; well specifically, "egg yolk-containing ingredients" Okay. Case closed. It's not Mayo.

I think the point is not whether it fits the current standard but whether those standards make sense in an age of innovation. I think consumers are smart enough to figure out whether or not the product they bought is mayonnaise. If it tastes like mayo, works like mayonnaise, smells like mayonnaise, is it not mayonnaise? Who cares if it has eggs, and why are the Feds getting involved anyway?

[deleted]

Re: Big Mayo Files Lawsuit Against Food-Tech Startup Hampton Creek

#13

Post by entee »

whafro wrote: post #4

Mayonnaise is oil, egg yolks, and an acid (typically vinegar or lemon juice). If you don't have these things, it's not mayonnaise. It seems like it'd be pretty easy for them to call it "Vegan Mayo," where folks are assuming there's a major substitute for a core ingredient. "Just Mayo," on the other hand, seems to claim the opposite. It's still pretty whiny for Hellmann's/Best Foods/Unilever/Whomever to file the lawsu…

Neither are a lot of Hellmann’s products. Lots of their products are called "mayonnaise dressing" instead of "mayonnaise" probably because they don’t fit the criteria either. Do you care though? You probably never noticed, and just had a really nice sandwich.

The standard is actually super specific:

http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRS...

for example you have to have at least 65% by weight oil and at least 2.5% acid.

If I buy something that has "mayonnaise" on it, then I’m buying "mayonnaise". If my sandwich sucks, then I won’t buy it again. No need for the government to tell me what is and isn’t mayonnaise.

Re: Big Mayo Files Lawsuit Against Food-Tech Startup Hampton Creek

#14

Post by yebyen »

rayiner wrote: post #6

So it's called "Just Mayo," mayonnaise being a food product that contains eggs by definition, and has a picture of an egg on its label. But it isn't mayonnaise and doesn't contain eggs. Maybe the hipster irony is just lost on me.

It's a picture of an egg with a plant growing inside of it. I don't really know how much clearer the iconography could actually be. It's mayo, but with some plant product instead of chicken eggs. Were you really deceived, or are you playing devil's advocate? (Edit: parent edited his post, it no longer says "deceptive marketing at its best.")

I agree that "mayo" is generally considered to be synonymous with "mayonnaise" and that mayonnaise has a precise definition in the law, but neither of these are a trademark. The law doesn't define "mayo." It defines mayonnaise.

It's not clear to me if the standards of "confusingly similar" still apply in cases outside of trademark. I know this is a standard in trademark. It's not like they're marketing a non-dairy "malk", which is obviously OK.

Maybe they should change the product name to "Nellman's" and they would be better off. I went looking for any brand of Mayonnaise that markets itself as just "Mayo" and didn't find one.

Re: Big Mayo Files Lawsuit Against Food-Tech Startup Hampton Creek

#15

Post by ginko »

entee wrote: post #13
whafro wrote: post #4

Mayonnaise is oil, egg yolks, and an acid (typically vinegar or lemon juice). If you don't have these things, it's not mayonnaise. It seems like it'd be pretty easy for them to call it "Vegan Mayo," where folks are assuming there's a major substitute for a core ingredient. "Just Mayo," on the other hand, seems to claim the opposite. It's still pretty whiny for Hellmann's/Best Foods/Unilever/Whomever to file the lawsu…

Neither are a lot of Hellmann’s products. Lots of their products are called "mayonnaise dressing" instead of "mayonnaise" probably because they don’t fit the criteria either. Do you care though? You probably never noticed, and just had a really nice sandwich. The standard is actually super specific: http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRS... for example you have to have at least 65% by weight oil…

If I buy something that has mayonnaise on it then I'm expecting _mayonnaise_.

Re: Big Mayo Files Lawsuit Against Food-Tech Startup Hampton Creek

#16

Post by _-__--- »

rayiner wrote: post #6

So it's called "Just Mayo," mayonnaise being a food product that contains eggs by definition, and has a picture of an egg on its label. But it isn't mayonnaise and doesn't contain eggs. Maybe the hipster irony is just lost on me.

As for the egg on the label, it's probably the idea of the plant growing into the empty place left by the removal of an egg, but the minimalist color scheme makes that kind of confusing (hard to imply negative space when all shapes are a different color pasted onto cardboard.

But yeah, it isn't mayo. Might work like mayo, but it ain't mayo. If they just put something on the packaging that says it isn't mayo, that'd probably be good enough?

I'd be more concerned about the lack of sustainability in the other half of a tuna salad sandwich

Re: Big Mayo Files Lawsuit Against Food-Tech Startup Hampton Creek

#17

Post by igurari »

whafro wrote: post #4

Mayonnaise is oil, egg yolks, and an acid (typically vinegar or lemon juice). If you don't have these things, it's not mayonnaise. It seems like it'd be pretty easy for them to call it "Vegan Mayo," where folks are assuming there's a major substitute for a core ingredient. "Just Mayo," on the other hand, seems to claim the opposite. It's still pretty whiny for Hellmann's/Best Foods/Unilever/Whomever to file the lawsu…

Depends on which meaning of "Just" you use:

1. guided by truth, reason, justice, and fairness: We hope to be just in our understanding of such difficult situations.

2. exactly or precisely: This is just what I mean.

Re: Big Mayo Files Lawsuit Against Food-Tech Startup Hampton Creek

#18

Post by batbomb »

whafro wrote: post #4

Mayonnaise is oil, egg yolks, and an acid (typically vinegar or lemon juice). If you don't have these things, it's not mayonnaise. It seems like it'd be pretty easy for them to call it "Vegan Mayo," where folks are assuming there's a major substitute for a core ingredient. "Just Mayo," on the other hand, seems to claim the opposite. It's still pretty whiny for Hellmann's/Best Foods/Unilever/Whomever to file the lawsu…

Technically speaking, mayonnaise is oil, an lecithin based emulsifier derived from egg yolks, and an acid (which may be vinegar, or mustard, or something else).

If you get a vegan emulsifier to work as good or better than eggs, then go ahead and call it the generic, unprotected "mayo"- because that's what it is, and that's how it will be used.

This blog post/article is a bit hyperbolic with the whole the dirty egg industry thing.

Re: Big Mayo Files Lawsuit Against Food-Tech Startup Hampton Creek

#19

Post by abandonliberty »

whafro wrote: post #4

Mayonnaise is oil, egg yolks, and an acid (typically vinegar or lemon juice). If you don't have these things, it's not mayonnaise. It seems like it'd be pretty easy for them to call it "Vegan Mayo," where folks are assuming there's a major substitute for a core ingredient. "Just Mayo," on the other hand, seems to claim the opposite. It's still pretty whiny for Hellmann's/Best Foods/Unilever/Whomever to file the lawsu…

Whiny?

>Unilever is asking the court not only to make Hampton Creek stop using the Just Mayo name (and remove all current product from store shelves), but also to pay Unilever the amount obtained from profits, plus triple damages.

I do not understand how our legal system entitles Unilever to anything.

Re: Big Mayo Files Lawsuit Against Food-Tech Startup Hampton Creek

#20

Post by bryanlarsen »

yebyen wrote: post #14
rayiner wrote: post #6

So it's called "Just Mayo," mayonnaise being a food product that contains eggs by definition, and has a picture of an egg on its label. But it isn't mayonnaise and doesn't contain eggs. Maybe the hipster irony is just lost on me.

It's a picture of an egg with a plant growing inside of it. I don't really know how much clearer the iconography could actually be. It's mayo, but with some plant product instead of chicken eggs. Were you really deceived, or are you playing devil's advocate? (Edit: parent edited his post, it no longer says "deceptive marketing at its best.") I agree that "mayo" is generally considered to be synonymous with "mayonnais…

To me, that logo looks like a perfect logo for real mayonnaise: it contains the two main ingredients: an egg + a plant representing the oil.
Post reply on HN