Cease and Desist... To do or Not to do...

Wedding favors by Butcher's Bunches.. Spreading the Love May 15, 2011

As many of you know Butcher's Bunches Handcrafted Preserves has been issued a ceased and desist demand by local Salt Lake Business Amour Spreads.  Beginning operations on November 17th 2011, Amour had a grand gala at Pago, SLC to introduce a line of locally & sustainably sourced marmalade's and other spreads cooked in traditional Copper Pots.  My personal favorite is the Pear Lavender.  I like to purchase local grown produce and I cannot grasp the fact that Oranges, Lemons and pomegranates are truly locally sourced or even red fleshed nectarines. 

Marketing Materials Used in 2011

My company is identical to theirs in that I make jam in Utah.  That is where the similarities end.  I truly do source my fruit from local farms.  I do not know of one farm in Utah that grows red flesh nectarines in the quantities needed to supply a jam operation.  As a close friend and a celebrated chef from Utah stated yesterday on our facebook page: "I am not familiar with any citrus groves in this (state) .... I believes that they died out when all the Avocado's did." (He looked at their website and called it like he saw it)

Another difference that is significant is that I add little or NO sugar to my products in order to emphasize the wonderful vibrant tastes of produce that is grown in the state of Utah.  Butcher's Bunches uses an American traditional method of canning and processing that was used by early pioneers and settlers.  Sugar was not available to the common classes (it was not affordable) and so it simply was not used.  Just fresh fruit cooked lovingly for hours in Stainless Steel Pots.  We support local and American, carrying American tradition through to modern times.

French preserving methods employ the use of pure Copper Pots and this is the method that Amour Spreads uses. All copper cooking vessels are copper clad with tin, stainless, carbon steel, or aluminum alloys EXCEPT sugar pans. This is from antiquity.  ANY food cooked in pure copper has trace amounts of the metal left in it, and when used repeatedly, copper is a heavy metal toxic when digested. They usually only use pure copper for pulled sugar, meringues, rock candy etc, because it is soft and won't pass the scorch point for pure cane sugar.  This is something to be aware of.  Lined Copper pans are beautiful and wonderful to cook with in a kitchen.  However unlined, pure copper pans in a commercial setting  are not the pans that most people would choose who are concerned with safety and health issues-French tradition or not.    Americans are more knowledgeable than other societies are.

Our first Spread the Love Labels.. 2/2011
On the bottom of the jars in these photos!

 I have nothing against Amour Spreads personally.  I don't know them at all (we have met one time) or their line.  I have only tasted the Pear Lavender and like I said, I enjoy it (it is SO sweet compared to the jams that I make, but still good!)  They have beautiful jars.  About the trademark issue.  I have several phrases that I use with my product.  One of them is Spread the Love.  I have posted a few pictures in this blog.  One is of a wedding that was held in May of 2011.  It is clearly dated May 25, 2011 and logo'd with Spread the Love..(The order was placed in February 2011.) The adjacent stickers are on the bottom of every jar to show who made the jam and our website and contact info is also on the jar.

I have also posted a couple pics of business cards, shelf talkers, and postcards that were distributed to stores, at gardeners markets and a variety of other places throughout 2011 for business purposes that utilize the phrase Spread the Love.  Butcher's Bunches has not infringed on Amour's newly applied for Trademark Phrase "Spread Love."  We own the Trademark in the state of Utah.  We have been using the phrase in active commerce for much longer than they have and that is what counts in the legal world.  Another unfortunate thing is that we don't really care.  We do care about malicious slander, wasting time when we could be working and supporting our families and yes, jamming to support ourselves and other local companies.  That is what it is REALLY about.  As I stated to friends on Facebook, Amour and a select few of their supporter's have already driven a huge wedge in the local business community in SLC.  This is where we all lose.  The economy, the local community, everything.  I truly hope that everyone will think of that.  There is no good side here.  Only foolish frivolity and losers.

We love to "Spread the Love" with our healthy Products. 
This incident is a waste of time, money and local values.