Music
Hall and Oates are suing a hipster granola brand named Haulin' Oats
by Mark Teo
March 5, 2015
Brooklyn granola companies, take note: Hall and Oates’ private eyes are watching you. At least that’s what Early Bird Food Co. discovered after they were handed a lawsuit over their granola product, Haulin’ Oates. According to Fact Mag, the soft-soul duo may be down with man eaters, but they certainly don’t approve of hand-made, small-batch granola eaters—especially ones that have pilfered their band name.
Their message to those who are using the Hall and Oates brand name? I can’t go for that.
New York Daily News reports that Darryl Hall and John Oates filed a lawsuit to the Brooklyn Federal Court, arguing that the food manufacturer used a “phonetic play on Daryl Hall and John Oates’ well-known brand name.” Well, duh.
Several parties, the lawsuit claims, have tried “to make a connection between the artists’ names and oats-related products.” A cursory Google search proves it to be true: A Tennessee-based company also makes an organic blend of oats under the Haulin’ Oats banner, while various website sell Haulin’ Oats tees and tote bags.
It seems like the duo may be attempting to make an example out of Early Bird Food Co. Too bad, though, because their granola sounds delicious: Created in small batches, the Red Hook, Brooklyn-based company creates maple-oat creations that are, in their words, small-batch and made by hand. As breakfast foods go, it’s everything my heart desires.
You’ve got a lot of nerve (parfait, parfait), Haulin’ Oats.
