WHEN you think of a peanut butter cup you inevitably picture the iconic orange Reese’s packaging.
But a lot of people don’t know the history behind the candy brand’s famous look.
Introduced by The Hershey Company in 1928, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups have been a staple of the U.S. candy scene ever since.
From Halloween to Easter, the bright orange packaging crops up all the time.
According to The Counter, the shade of orange has a significant place within the brand.
After tucking into the tasty snack, a reporter at The Counter noticed an interesting detail on the product’s packaging.
Underneath the allergy warnings and customer service number, “there was this: ‘Orange background color is a registered trademark,'” The Counter reported.
The writer explained: “It turns out, claiming a color as your own intellectual property is not totally without precedent.”
While logos, slogans, and even font are well-known within the field of copyright, candy wrapper color seems like something outside the realm of trademarks.
“When an object has color, it is simply reflecting a certain wavelength of light into our eyes. As an extension, trademarking color seems akin to trademarking photons,” The Counter reporter explained.
However, the outlet referenced previous cases both within and outside of the candy industry relating to color patents.
In 1960, French artist Yves Klein was awarded the right to officially named a vibrant aquamarine color International Klein Blue.
Years later, Hershey Co. threw down with Mars, Inc. over a specific shade of brown and orange packaging used on the latter’s Dove brand chocolate and peanut butter cups.
In the U.K., Cadbury famously lost a trademark case with competitor Nestle over their popular Royal Purple packaging.
“In the case of Reese’s orange, parent company Hershey Co. doesn’t actually own the color, but its trademark precludes competitors in the confectionary world from using it,” the reporter explained.
This concept prevents competitor companies from veering inattentive customers towards their products by accident.
So while the iconic Reese’s orange may be considered the intellectual property of Hershey Co. when it comes to tasty snacks, fear not you can use the color in any other area of life.
