The Aporia · Toblerone owner sues British vegan chocolate brand over chunky shape

Mondelēz International, owner of Toblerone, has filed a lawsuit against British vegan chocolate brand Catherine’s Originals for allegedly copying Toblerone's distinctive chunky shape. The dispute centers around Catherine’s Originals' O’bar, which features segments with rounded semi-oval humps similar to Toblerone. A 200g O’bar costs between £9.20 and £10.55, while a standard milk chocolate Toblerone is priced at £2.50. Catherine’s Originals founder Catherine Dodd denies any wrongdoing, stating that the shape reflects an "O" for Originals and asserting her brand's right to defend its design through legal means.

Written by AI on 2026-10-30, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

Story summary

Mondelēz International, which owns Toblerone, has filed legal action against Catherine’s Originals in London's High Court for allegedly infringing on Toblerone's trademark and passing off its famous triangular shape. Catherine’s Originals is a small British vegan chocolate brand founded by Catherine Dodd in 2021, known for its O’bar range of chocolates. The lawsuit claims that the rounded semi-oval segments of O'bars are too similar to Toblerone's iconic design. A standard milk chocolate Toblerone bar costs around £2.50, while Catherine’s Originals bars cost between £9.20 and £10.55 for exotic flavors like pumpkin spice or cinnamon swirl. Mondelēz International argues that the Toblerone shape is one of the most recognized globally since 1929 and has trademarked it in Europe during the 1990s when Kraft Foods owned Toblerone before splitting into Mondelez in 2012. Catherine Dodd maintains her company's innocence, stating that the O for Originals inspired the shape, and they are working with their legal team to defend their position.

Written for “Toblerone Sues Over Shape Copying” on 2026-11-04, grounded in this article and the 2 other(s) covering the same event.

📰 Toblerone Sues Over Shape Copying

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This article reads unscored and hedges 17% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.

Toblerone maker sues UK start-up over lookalike bar for vegans Same event

The Straits Times

Hedges 4 of 19 claims Outlet record 66/100

Toblerone sues British chocolate maker for 'copying' their famous shape Same event

Daily Mail

Hedges 5 of 34 claims Outlet record 69/100

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Source leaning vs. consistency

Sarah Butler

23 article(s) here · 0 carrying a prediction

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🔮 The legal fight has emerged just days after Mondelēz launched legal action against another small vegan chocolate brand, Catherine’s Originals, accusing it of copying the famous chunky shape of Toblerone with its O’bar. Moo Free, which has products stocked in several major supermarkets and online, said it had been selling its Snowballs for about two years before Mondelēz demanded it immediately remove the items from sale just ahead of the busy Christmas period. Mike Jessop, who co-founded Devon-based Moo Free in 2010 when he and his wife could not find allergen-free chocolates for Easter or Christmas, said they began selling online before being picked up by Waitrose and then other supermarkets.

2026-11-02 · assertive framing · Snowball fight: Cadbury owner in trademark row over festive chocolate treat

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Also by Sarah Butler

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2026-11-03 · The Guardian

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Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

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The owner of Toblerone is taking legal action against a tiny British vegan chocolate brand which it claims has been copying the Swiss chocolate bar’s famous chunky shape. uncertain

it → take → shape

Mondelēz has filed papers at the high court in London accusing Catherine’s Original’s of “passing off” and trademark infringement with its O’bar – a length of chocolate divided into segments each with a rounded semi-oval hump. asserted

Mondelēz → file → hump

The 200g bars cost £9.20 for a milk or plain variety, and as much as £10.55 for more exotic flavours such as pumpkin spice or cinnamon swirl. asserted

bars → cost → spice

A standard milk chocolate Toblerone can be bought for £2.50. asserted

Toblerone → buy → 2.50

Catherine’s Originals, founded by the then teenager Catherine Dodd in 2021, makes its chocolate in Walberton in SussexEngland and sells them via markets, online or by subscription. asserted

Originals → found → subscription

Dodd said the shape of her bars reflected an O for Originals. asserted

shape → say → Originals

“We stand firmly behind the product and identity we’ve created,” she said. asserted

she → stand → product

“We strongly disagree with the claim concerning O’bar and are working with our legal team to defend our position. uncertain

We → disagree → position

Honestly, it’s fairly frightening for a small business we’ve put so much care and hard work into building. asserted

we → ’ → building

But being a smaller business does not mean being afraid to stand up for what we’ve created.” asserted

we → mean → what

The brand’s legal adviser, Stephen Lowry, at Brandsmiths added: “Our client disagrees with the claim and considers O’bar to have its own distinctive design and identity. uncertain

O’bar → add → design

We look forward to addressing the matter through the appropriate legal process.” asserted

We → look → process

Mondelēz International, which also owns Britain’s Cadbury brand and Côte D’Or coffee as well as Toblerone, said: “The iconic Toblerone shape is one of the most recognised and distinctive product designs in the UK and across the world, and has been a hallmark of the brand since 1929. asserted

shape → own → 1929

“We have a responsibility to protect our trademarks and intellectual property, which we take seriously. asserted

we → have → which

We have attempted to resolve this matter constructively and directly with Catherine’s Originals over several months but unfortunately have been unable to reach an agreement. asserted

We → attempt → agreement

We cannot comment further on ongoing legal matters.” asserted

We → comment → matters

The latest battle over Toblerone comes after budget chain Poundland was forced to delay the launch of its Twin Peaks bar in 2017, which had two humps rather than the single peaks of Toblerone, after a legal warning from Mondelēz. asserted

which → come → Mondelēz

The bar eventually relaunched after Poundland modified the colour of the packaging and the shape of the bar and is still on sale today. asserted

Poundland → relaunche → sale

Toblerone owner sues British vegan chocolate brand over chunky shape

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