Cuthbert the copycaterpillar
M&S sues Aldi over lookalike chocolate cake
FOR 30 years he’s been a children’s party favourite. .
And until a decade ago, o, Colin the Caterpillar had the e field of larvae-inspired cakes s pretty much to himself.
But now supermarket shelves es are crawling with products seemingly mne. imitating the money-spinning Marks & Spencer favourite.
That has led to a legal bunfight. ht. M&S announced yesterday it is taking Aldi to court over its ts ‘copycaterpillar’, Cuthbert.
Both cakes are log-shaped chocolate sponges, with a solid chocolate shell topped with sweets. s. Cuthbert has near identical design n to its more established rival, down n to the white chocolate face, but at t £4.99 is more than £2 cheaper.
M&S has lodged an intellectual l property claim with the High h Court, arguing that Aldi is ‘riding g on the coat-tails’ of its reputation, with the similar look of Cuthbert t leading consumers to believe it is of the same quality as Colin.
It is demanding the product is removed and wants Aldi to agree not to sell anything similar in future.
While M&S has Aldi in its sights, it is not the only rival store to take a bite out of the caterpillar cake market. There is Cecil from Waitrose, Curly from Tesco, Wiggles from Sainsbury’s, Clyde from Asda and Morris from Morrisons. Colin was launched in 1990 and his appearance has remain largely the same since 2004, except for adaptations for occasions such as Halloween and Christmas.
The brand includes sweets and minicakes – and even Colin’s girlfriend Connie, who is decorated with a pink bow and flowers. They are central to the th retailer’s partnership with Macmillan m and it has created a Colin product pr for the cancer charity’s annual an World’s Biggest Coffee Morning in fundraising event. M&S has three th trademarks relating to Colin. A spokesman said: ‘Because we know kn the M&S brand is special to our ou customers and they expect only the th very best from us, love and care goes g into every M&S product on our o shelves. ‘So we want to protect Colin, Connie n and our reputation for freshness, n quality, innovation and value.’ H However, yesterday Aldi said its ca c cake has not been on sale since F February. ‘The Cuthbert cake is a s seasonal product,’ it said. ‘Aldi has o only been made aware of the claim b by M&S today.’ Aldi has faced several accusations t of selling copycat products, a although it denies deliberately m making its lines similar to popular b brands in order to win sales. In 2019, it withdrew its Moo range o of ‘gourmet yogurt’ after the maker o of a similar product complained th they looked like its pots. Sausage brand Heck accused Aldi of o being a ‘playground bully’ by mimicking its Chicken Italia sausages and threatened to sue, but the cutprice store argued that the product and packaging was consistent with its own long-established range. And the Saucy Fish Co brought legal action over Aldi’s packs of Saucy Salmon fillets. The case was settled out of court.
PAINT they sweet! You could describe these mini-masterpieces as the ultimate in creature comfort-eating. Wildlife lover and Great British Bake Off fan Kitty Peels combines her two guilty pleasures to make stunning animal cupcakes.
From foxes and badgers to your favourite pet, Kitty can whip up a tasty treat which would make Paul Hollywood proud. Kitty, 41, of Brighton, East Sussex, says: ‘I’ve been passionate about animals my whole life. It’s exciting to combine my two loves.’
Having begun making her culinary creations when lockdown hit her day job as an aerial circus performer, she now sells her vegan sweet treats on kittygirlbakes. co.uk. She says: ‘My cupcakes have a vegan buttercream swirl then I freehand-sculpt fondant icing to form the animals to go on the top, giving them a 3D effect.
‘As a wildlife lover, I wanted to raise money to help the Australian animals affected by the bushfires. I made a lot of cute koala cupcakes and raised more than £1,000 for charity Animals Australia. After that, a lot of people asked if I had my own business or suggested I start one, so not long after that Kitty Girl Bakes was born.’
Decorating each cake can take from 15 minutes to an hour for the more complicated ones. ‘Cost varies depending on the detail and how long it will take.’
Kitty adds: ‘I’ve been blown away with the lovely responses. My owls and British birds especially received a lot of attention.’