The General Court of the European Union has ruled that the British supermarket chain Iceland Foods cannot hold exclusive rights to the “Iceland” trademark within the European Union. The court concluded that the name constitutes a geographical designation and could mislead consumers about the origin of the goods.
As a result, Iceland Foods has definitively lost its rights to the “Iceland” brand in the EU.
The case was initiated in 2018 by Icelandic Trademark Holding, with support from the government of Iceland. At the heart of the dispute was a key question: can a private company monopolize the name of a sovereign country, especially when consumers may associate that name with a specific place of production?
The court sided with the Icelandic authorities, stating that using a country’s name as a trademark for food products — such as frozen vegetables, yogurts, or cereals – could create a false impression that the goods originate from Iceland. This, the judges said, violates EU regulations that prohibit registering geographical terms as trademarks when they describe essential characteristics of goods, including their origin.
Representatives of Iceland Foods argued that the brand’s logo – a red rectangle with the word “Iceland” – provided sufficient distinctiveness. However, the court found these design elements merely decorative, noting that the central and dominant element remained the word “Iceland” itself.
The company also presented consumer surveys claiming that most people do not associate the name with the country, but the court dismissed this evidence as unconvincing and unreliable.
Ultimately, the court upheld the EUIPO decision to cancel the Iceland trademark across the EU and ordered Iceland Foods to cover legal costs.
Trademark law expert Gordian Hasselblatt (CMS, Cologne) called the ruling “a landmark example of the EU’s approach to geographical names.” According to him, the decision reinforces the principle that geographical terms – especially country names – must remain available to all market participants, as they often indicate qualities important to consumers.
Iceland Foods still has two months to appeal the ruling to the Court of Justice of the European Union, though it remains unclear whether the company will do so.
