Alcoholic Sunny Delight? Recent Trademark Filings Indicate It May Be Coming

Is Sunny Delight getting into the alcoholic beverage industry? Recent trademark filings suggest so. On August 11th, Sunny Delight Beverages Co. filed federal trademark applications for:

• SUNNYD SCREWY
• SUNNYD SCREWIE

Both applications cover the same goods, namely:

• Alcoholic beverages, except beer; hard seltzer (in Class 33); and
• Fruit juice drinks containing water; fruit punch; non-alcoholic beverages, namely, carbonated beverages and fruit juice drink-based beverages with vitamins; energy drinks; beer (in Class 32).

Sunny Delight filed these applications on an intent-to-use basis, suggesting it is not currently selling these products but has a bona fide intention to do so in the near future. TMEP 806.01(b). While the filings in no way require Sunny Delight to sell a SunnyD Screwy or Screwie in the future, they do suggest that plans for an alcoholic beverage are in the works. Sunny Delight will need to start actually selling the products before these trademarks can register, as trademarks cannot be registered until they are in use (with limited exceptions).

This isn't the first federal trademark application covering alcoholic beverages filed by Sunny Delight. Back in June 2021, it filed another application for SUNNYD covering "alcoholic beverages, except beer; hard seltzer." That application was approved by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, but Sunny Delight still needs to prove it is actually using that mark in conjunction with alcoholic beverages before the mark can be registered.

For those of you who dreamed of a Sunny Delight screwdriver, your dream may be coming true soon.

Are Mr. Peanut, Skippy, and SPAM Moving into the Virtual World? Recent Trademark Applications by Hormel Foods Suggest So

As the metaverse becomes more and more popular, many brands are filing trademark applications for virtual versions of their goods and services. Hormel Foods LLC is no exception. On July 14th, the food company filed a federal trademark application for the Mr. Peanut logo seen below.

But that application doesn't cover peanuts. Instead, it covers the goods and services listed below:

• Downloadable multimedia files containing artwork, text, audio, and video relating to food and beverages, authenticated by non-fungible tokens (NFTs); downloadable virtual goods, namely food and beverage products for use in virtual worlds
• Online retail grocery store services featuring virtual food and beverage products for use in online virtual worlds; provision of an online marketplace for buyers and sellers of downloadable digital art images, video and audio clips, authenticated by non-fungible tokens (NFTs)
• Entertainment services, namely, online, non-downloadable virtual food and beverage products for use in virtual worlds

Hormel filed the application on an intent-to-use basis, suggesting it is not currently offering these goods and services in conjunction with the Mr. Peanut logo, but has a bona fide intention to do so in the near future. See TMEP 806.01(b). Hormel will be required to prove it is actually using the Mr. Peanut logo in conjunction with these goods and services in order to obtain the trademark registration.

This is not the first trademark application filed by Hormel Foods covering virtual goods. Earlier this month, the company filed applications for PLANTERS, MR. PEANUT, SKIPPY, and SPAM covering the same goods and services.

Trademark applications for virtuals goods are becoming more and more popular as companies seek to exploit business opportunities in the virtual world and expand their trademark protection into the same. Might you be buying virtual Skippy peanut butter and SPAM in an online grocery store soon? It appears so.