MICHAEL TRAN/Getty Images, Feastables.com
The world's biggest YouTuber MrBeast has lost his legal battle with a Florida-based peanut company over the branding of one of his candy bars.
One flavor of his Feastables bars, called "Deez Nutz," was deemed too similar to the name of snack company Dee's Nuts, owned by Brian Ditore.
Court documents, seen by Business Insider, show Ditore and Dee's Nuts filed a lawsuit against MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, on August 25. He accused Donaldson's Feastables brand of trademark infringement by naming its peanut butter-flavored bar "Deez Nuts."
The name is "confusingly similar and phonetically equivalent" to Dee's Nuts, the complaint says. Dee's Nuts products are sold in 34 states, it says, and Ditore has held the trademark since 2012.
Ditore founded Dee's Nuts more than a decade ago, the complaint says, in memory of his grandmother. The name "paid homage to her and her comedic flair," it says.
Donaldson, meanwhile, is known as YouTube's major philanthropist, giving away cars, houses, and thousands of dollars to fans. He's also exploded in popularity for his major social experiments, such as recreating his own real-life "Squid Game."
Former staff recently spoke with BI about what it was like to work with the YouTuber, describing demanding hours, incredible stunts, and an "addictive" lifestyle.
Donaldson founded Feastables in January 2022. It made $10 million in its first few months and caused a stir online when Donaldson asked fans to tidy up shelves of bars in grocery stores for a chance to win $5,000.
Donaldson's interest in the phrase "Deez Nuts" probably stemmed from an internet meme that emerged in 2016, when an Iowa teenager launched a presidential campaign under that name. The phrase has since become a widespread gag.
Feastables
The complaint sought for Feastables to cease using "Deez Nuts" or any phrase that resembled the name Dee's Nuts.
On December 6, the court granted a permanent injunction against Feastables Inc, stating the company could no longer use "Deez Nuts" on its packaging.
The company and its employees are "permanently enjoined from manufacturing, or causing to be manufactured, purchasing, importing, exporting, advertising, marketing, distributing, offering for sale, selling or commercially exploiting in any manner, snack foods bearing the Dee's Nuts Mark, and/or reproductions, counterfeits, copies or colorable imitations thereof, including but not limited to, the DEEZ NUTZ mark," the final order reads.
As of Thursday December 14, "Deez Nuts" bars are still available for purchase on the Feastables website, with a 10-pack costing $29.99.
BI has reached out to representatives for Donaldson and Dee's Nuts for comment.
