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April 7, 2025

Hello Reader,

You may have seen MUSH—the oat-based breakfast cups—on Costco shelves. My wife picked some up recently, and I thought it was a solid product. So I was surprised to learn the company behind it just lost their trademark battle at the USPTO.

Mush Foods, Inc. tried to register MUSH as a trademark for “ready-to-eat cereals” made with oats. But the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) ruled that “mush” is generic—meaning it's a common term for a type of food (like porridge or oatmeal) and can't be protected as a brand name.

Here’s why they lost:
➡️ The word “mush” is defined as a kind of boiled cereal or porridge.
➡️ The product itself is oat-based and fits squarely within that definition.
➡️ Even if the word isn’t widely used today, dictionaries, recipes, and YouTube videos all show that people still understand “mush” to mean a food made from oats.

The court didn’t care that:

• The company had been using the name since 2015
• No competitors were using “mush” as a brand
• Their sales were strong

In the eyes of the USPTO, if a name is too generic, you can’t claim it as a trademark—no matter how well you’ve marketed it.

Why this matters for you:

If you’ve got a great product with a name that feels clever, descriptive, or “on the nose,” it might actually be too descriptive to protect. And if you’re already on the shelves at major retailers like Costco, that’s a risky spot to be without a registered trademark.

Let’s make sure that doesn’t happen to your brand. A quick trademark check now can save you time, money, and a ton of heartache later.

Keep Your Brand Safe and Protected,​
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J.J. Lee and the Trademark Lawyer Law Firm Team!

P.S. Selling your product at a big retailer like Costco is a huge win—but it also puts a spotlight on your brand. If your name isn’t protected before you hit the shelves, you could lose everything you’ve built. Let's talk before that happens.

​trademarklawyerfirm.com​
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