A trademark is a legally registered symbol, word, or phrase that identifies a company or particular brand of product or service.
If your company has an identifying mark, it’s best to get it registered as a trademark. A trademark can help protect your company’s logo or phrase from being used by any other company.
When applying for a trademark, you'll have to go through the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), which requires that you register under a particular trademark class.
This article will cover Trademark Class 29, which protects businesses that sell a wide variety of goods such as meat, dairy, and nuts.
Trademark Class 29
Class 29 is a culinary class, which means it primarily protects various food products.
Specifically, this class covers all meats, fish, poultry and wild game, as well as animal products such as eggs and milk. Some vegetables, oils, and condiments are in this category too.
Meat and Seafood Products
All forms of meat fall under this trademark category, regardless of where it comes from.
Beef, pork, poultry, game, fish, lobster, clams, crab, and many other types of meat are all covered by this class.
Even certain processed or related products appear here, such as sausages, sardines, caviar, and seaweed.
Dairy Products
Milk, cream, and all milk products are on this list. All kinds of cheese and cheese spreads are here as well. Butter, butter spreads, and margarines are also in this category.
Nuts, Olives, and Coconuts
If you can name a nut, it’s in Class 29. This includes all nut spreads like peanut and almond butter as well.
Nut oils also make an appearance, including products such as sunflower and peanut oil.
Similarly, most products made from olives and coconuts are also in this category. Coconut oil, olives, coconut butter, and more all appear here as well.
Fruits and Vegetables
Class 29 specifically covers a few types of "processed" fruits and vegetables.
Fresh fruits, vegetables, and other product instead go into Class 31, which covers "natural agricultural goods."
Specifically, Class 29 covers various types of:
- Fruit leather and fruit snacks
- Dried, frozen, and canned fruit
- Fruit spreads (jams and jellies)
- Cooked, dried, frozen, and juiced vegetables
- Vegetable preserves (pickles and jarred jalapeños)
Related Items
With some products, it can be hard to determine which trademark class they belong in.
If you're not sure if your product fits into Trademark Class 29, consider some of these closely related items:
- Baby food goes into Class 5, which covers pharmaceutical goods.
- Animal food goes into Class 31, even if it uses the products described above.
- If your product is a drink it will instead go into one of the drink classes. Class 32 covers light beverage products (beer, fruit juice, soda) while Class 33 covers most wines and spirits.
Conclusion
When you submit your trademark application with the USPTO, they'll ask that you register under the class that best fits your product or service.
Trademark Class 29 covers all brands relating to meat, dairy, and nuts, as well as certain preserved vegetables and other related goods.
If you plan to apply for a trademark, it’s best to consult with an experienced trademark lawyer.
You don’t want to go through the time and expense of applying for a trademark, only to have it rejected by the USPTO.
A trademark lawyer can help you avoid rejection by walking you through the application process.
