DALI grocery chain faces intellectual property complaint for “knockoff” products

HAVE you ever shopped at Hard Discount Philippines Inc.’s store, the DALI Everyday Grocery?

This chain store got the attention of Filipinos due to the low prices of their items. However, some items have packaging that looks slightly like those of brands from NutriAsia Inc. like Datu Puti and UFC.

Because of this similarity, the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) said in a radio interview that NutriAsia Inc. has filed an intellectual property complaint against the company.

In particular, the IPOPHL will be ordering DALI to stop selling three products: their Rajah Puro vinegar and soy sauce, as well as their Kulina banana catsup.

“Ang trademark infringement, hindi kailangang gayang-gaya, pero kung may pagkakahawig na pwedeng magresulta sa confusion o kamalian o mistake ang public, pwedeng magkaroon ng trademark infringement,” explained IPOPHL deputy director general Atty. Nathaniel Arevalo in an interview with TeleRadyo.

He added that the complaint is pending and that an application for preliminary injunction has been made. If the registered trademark were to have a patented design, then a case could then be filed.

The law firm Cruz Marcelo and Tenefrancia also released a statement saying they would be representing NutriAsia Inc. in their case against Hard Discount Philippines, with the charges being copyright and trademark infringement as well as unfair competition.

A month earlier, Trade and Industry Assistant Secretary Amanda Nograles explained in a TeleRadyo interview that they had sent a show cause order to DALI following 13 complaints from the consumer rights group Malayang Konsyumer.

This was due to several different issues such as behavior problems of their staff, sanitary issues, and mistakes made in weighing goods.

Public’s reactions

Since then, many online have come to the grocery chain’s defense, claiming that they like to shop at DALI given the affordability of their items.

One user on X, after posting about this issue on their account, received several messages in support of the store.

In the tweet, the user shared how his niece in Bulacan was shocked to find luncheon meat being sold at only PHP 17 at the store. Others in his replies have since shared a similar love for DALI’s products.

“Dito sa amin, halos sa tabi [ng] lahat ng bahay namin ang DALI; napaka-convenient, mura, at masasarap naman ang binebenta,” said a user on X.

“May mga paninda sila [na] mas masarap pa kaysa sa mga kilalang brands. Sa kanila na kami bumibili ng softdrinks, ice cream, chocolates, frozen meats, at iba pa.”

Another wrote: “Kaya lang naman sinisita ang DALI kasi talagang dinudumog ng mga tao sa baba ng presyo nila. Ayaw ng big competitors yan siyempre. Gusto nila namamanipula nila ang industriya kaya lahat gagawin kahit nakikinabang pa ang taong bayan.”

Some users also pointed out that there were other brands whose products also had similar colors to the packaging of NutriAsia’s products, so where then were the cases against those?

Others came to the defense of NutriAsia, agreeing that the products did look similar and that this case was only being done as a means of consumer protection from misleading packaging practices.