Mumias sues firm in ‘fake sugar’ row

A leading local sugar miller wants the court to order a company to stop packaging its imports in packages similar to its own.

Mumias Sugar claims that Option Two Limited has been duping the public by distributing imported sugar labelled “Mumias Sugar” causing it to lose of millions of shillings.

Consumers cannot differentiate between genuine Mumias sugar and the fake one. Prof Tom Ojienda, for Mumias said the firm has packaged, supplied and distributed sugar in packs so similar “as to cause confusion and deceive the public into thinking their sugar is that of Mumias.”

Two sets of packaged “Mumias Sugar” were displayed in court which was difficult to differentiate except the trade mark numbers.

Mumias Sugar claimed Option Two had been using Kanini Haraka Enterprises to distribute the “fake sugar” in Nairobi, Naivasha, Thika, Nyeri, Nakuru and Meru at the expense of their goodwill which has caused a decline in their profits.

“The company received complaints from customers and after a search on retails , we confirmed that there was another company imitating our design, logos and slogans,” said Prof Ojienda.
Mumias wants temporary orders to stop the distribution of the other sugar until the dispute is heard.

He said that a comparison of the two packs revealed that both packs of white sugar have green and white as well as the blue and white alternating stripes.

Both packs, he explained, have drawings of a sugarcane on the front right and left of the packs and logos are placed at the same place.

The hearing continues.