The small Colorado Springs-based producer of marijuana edibles sued in June by candy giant The Hershey Company for allegedly breaching a number of design and name patents quietly settled the dispute.
In a settlement penned in late September, TinctureBelle agreed to recall and destroy all edibles it sold that looked like the famed chocolate company’s products, or with names that played on their brands.
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Though the edibles company said it had long-ago stopped making products that appeared like those produced by Hershey — including well-known names such as Reese’s, Almond Joy and Heath — long before the federal lawsuit was filed in June in U.S. District Court in Denver, the settlement makes sure it won’t happen again.
TinctureBelle owner Char Mayes couldn’t be reached Thursday, nor could a spokesman for Hershey.
The settlement also requires TinctureBelle not to use the product names Hashees, Ganja Joy, Hasheath, Hasheats, Thingamajiggy or and Reefers, nor to use the name Reefer for any candies that contain either peanut butter or its flavorings. The company also agreed not to make packages with brown, yellow and orange colors, which are those used by the Reeses brand, according to a copy of the settlement.
Hershey had said TinctureBelle’s products harmed their brand name and could be confused for regular candy by children.
TinctureBelle neither admitted nor denied any of the allegations in the lawsuit as part of the settlement.
David Migoya: 303-954-1506, dmigoya@denverpost.com or twitter.com/davidmigoya
