A major copycat brand naming spat between frozen ready meals retailer Cook and M&S looks set to subside, while Sainsbury is facing a challenge to its right to use the So Organic name.

Cook has admitted defeat in its fight against Marks and Spencer over its larger rival's product range Cook!
The retailer had argued that the packaging and wording of M&S's Cook! was so similar it was causing customers to believe it was supplying M&S.

Now James Perry, MD of Cook, has admitted that the company has no option but to change its branding in the next few months to stop the confusion. He said he currently had a number of ideas for a new look, but was "playing his cards close to his chest". However, he ruled out a name change. "Despite the injustice, we have no choice. We have been forced into this by M&S, but we've decided to move on, otherwise it will be too big a distraction." M&S said it was pleased with the decision.

Meanwhile, online retailer So Organic is squaring up for a fight against Sainsbury over the supermarket's So Organic range.

Samantha Burlton, MD of So Organic, claimed that since Sainsbury rebranded its organic range as So Organic in September, she had been "inundated" with e-mails from a confused public. "Legal action is expensive but we will continue to take advice," said Burlton.

A spokeswoman for Sainsbury said: "We do not believe there is an overlap in trading names. We brand our products clearly as Sainsbury's So Organic. Ms Burlton's company trades online in health and beauty and household cleaning goods."

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