{"id":26086,"date":"2024-04-15T02:35:06","date_gmt":"2024-04-15T07:35:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/?p=26086"},"modified":"2024-04-15T02:35:14","modified_gmt":"2024-04-15T07:35:14","slug":"momofuku-backs-down-from-defending-its-chile-crunch-trademark-after-outcry-by-small-businesses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/?p=26086","title":{"rendered":"Momofuku backs down from defending its \u2018chile crunch\u2019 trademark after outcry by small businesses"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

NEW YORK (AP) \u2014 Momofuku, a food and restaurant brand started by food mogul David Chang<\/u><\/a>, said it won\u2019t defend its trademark on the name \u201cchile crunch\u201d after it sparked an outcry by sending cease-and-desist letters to other businesses using the term.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Momofuku started selling its Chili Crunch product in 2020, a crunchy spicy oil with dried peppers and other ingredients like sesame seeds and garlic. It\u2019s a riff on Chinese condiment chili crisp and other similar products from other countries. Different variations of chili crisp and other hot sauces have gained popularity in the U.S. in recent years<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Momofuku acquired the trademark for the name \u201cchile crunch\u201d from Chile Colonial in 2023. While Momofuku holds the trademark for \u201cchile crunch,\u201d spelled with an \u201ce,\u201d it also claims \u201ccommon law\u201d rights to \u201cchili crunch\u201d with an \u201ci\u201d and has filed for similar trademark status with the U.S. Patent Office for that spelling, which is still pending.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In March, Momofuku sent seven cease-and-desist letters to companies that were calling their product \u201cChili Crunch\u201d or \u201cChile Crunch.\u201d Most of the companies that received the letter were small brands founded by Asian Americans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As first reported by The Guardian<\/u><\/a> on April 4, several of the companies took to social media to complain the letters were unfair, particularly since most of the brands are small and David Chang and Momofuku are so well known in the Asian American and Pacific Islander community. Their complaints went viral, sparking a debate over whether Momofuku \u2014 or anyone \u2014 should be able to own the trademark of the generic sounding chile or chili crunch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>At first, Momofuku stood by its actions. It said in a statement it was obligated to defend its trademark or it risked losing it to a bigger company that might swoop in and copy their product if it wasn\u2019t defended. But by Friday, the company reversed course and said it would not be enforcing the trademark going forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOver the past week, we have heard the feedback from our community and now understand that the term \u2018chili crunch\u2019 carries broader meaning for many,\u201d the company said in an emailed statement. \u201cThis situation has created a painful divide between Momofuku, the AAPI community we care deeply about, and other companies sharing grocery store shelves. But the truth is, we all want the same things: to grow, to succeed and to make America\u2019s pantries and grocery stores a more diverse place.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michelle Tew, owner of Malaysian food brand Homiah, was one owner who spoke out on social media after she received a cease-and-desist letter from Momofuku on March 18 that said she had 90 days to stop selling her Sambal Chili Crunch products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tew said in an Instagram post that Momofuku\u2019s decision not to enforce the trademark is \u201ca step in the right direction,\u201d but she hopes Momofuku does more to demonstrate its commitment to the Asian American and Pacific Islander community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m so grateful for this community that have spoken loudly in support of this and rallied around small businesses like mine,\u201d she said in the statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Apnews<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NEW YORK (AP) \u2014 Momofuku, a food and restaurant brand started by food mogul David Chang, said it won\u2019t defend its trademark on the name \u201cchile crunch\u201d after it sparked an outcry by sending cease-and-desist letters to other businesses using the term. Momofuku started selling its Chili Crunch product in 2020, a crunchy spicy oil with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":26087,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1155],"tags":[27843,2109,7173,27842],"class_list":["post-26086","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-baifu","tag-protest","tag-small-business","tag-trademark"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26086","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=26086"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26086\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26088,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26086\/revisions\/26088"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/26087"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=26086"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=26086"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=26086"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}