January 29, 2008

Competitors' challenge to Tyson chicken marketing program denied

Four poultry companies filed a temporary restraining order against Tyson Foods Inc on Friday (January 25, 2008) over a labelling language but the request has been rejected.

The four companies, Gold'n Plump Poultry, Foster Farms, Perdue Farms and Sanderson Farms, said Tyson was using the "Raised Without Antibiotics" marketing language for chicken after it was set to adjust the wording.

They said ads were still running after January 20, 2008, a date that Tyson Senior Counsel Jenna Johnston, in a legal filing, had said the use of "Raised Without Antibiotics" would be taken off.

However, Tyson said that the ads in question had stopped airing even before the matter was brought to court.

The group's request was rejected on the basis that they did not have sufficient evidence to support the case.

USDA had approved Tyson's "Raised Without Antibiotics" labelling language last spring, a message that was part of its US$70 million marketing campaign.

The approval was however, rescinded by USDA in last fall, saying that the label should not have been approved because Tyson's use of ionophores in poultry feed.

USDA issued a directive in December that modified the acceptable labelling language. Tyson now plans to adjust the message to, "Chicken Raised Without Antibiotics that impact antibiotic resistance in humans."

Tyson said it expects to start using its new advertising and promotional materials in February.