The makers of Nerds candy filed a trademark infringement lawsuit Thursday against a Covina marijuana dispensary, alleging the pot shop is selling THC-laced candy packaged to look like Ferrara’s Nerds Rope.
As a result of the “confusion between Ferrara’s Nerds Rope candy and the unauthorized THC-infused Medicated Nerds Rope, children have become sick from ingesting the unauthorized THC-infused Medicated Nerds Rope,” the Ferrara Candy Co. alleges in the lawsuit against Tops Cannabis.
Despite the allegation, the lawsuit contains no examples of children having been exposed to the marijuana-infused candy.
A Tops Cannabis representative was not immediately available for comment.
The suit, filed in Los Angeles federal court, alleges Tops seeks to “benefit off the goodwill embodied by the Nerds (trademarks) and in doing so are endangering consumers’ well-being” by marketing Medicated Nerds Rope.
Chicago-based Ferrara is asking a federal judge to issue an order halting Tops from selling pot-infused edible products similar to Nerds, and award the dispensary’s profits from sales of the THC-laced candy.
Ferrara makes, distributes and markets four lines of Nerds products: Nerds candy, Big Chewy Nerds candy, Nerds Rope candy, and Nerds Gummy Clusters.
“Ferrara especially has marketed its Nerds and Nerds Rope candy products to parents as a fun and enjoyable treat for children of all ages,” the lawsuit states. “Therefore, Ferrara would never condone or authorize the use of the Nerds marks in connection with products that could be harmful to children.”
The company stated that it is enforcing its trademarks “to protect its consumers from inadvertent consumption of THC” and recently learned that “Tops was a significant seller of unauthorized Medicated Nerds Rope products.”
Ferrara Candy Co. alleges it attempted to resolve the dispute by contacting Tops, including advising it of the health hazards posed to children by Medicated Nerds Rope, but nothing was resolved.