Chipotle Mexican Grill is suing sweetgreen for trademark infringement, claiming the salad chain is using its intellectual property to promote its new Chipotle Chicken Burrito Bowl. 

sweetgreen launched the bowl on March 30, describing it in a press release as “the latest iteration of sweetgreen’s menu innovation strategy, as the brand evolves beyond salads to introduce a bowl without any greens.” sweetgreen’s co-founder and chief concept officer Nic Jammet said the dish’s name was inspired by its use of “bold chipotle spices.” 

The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday in California federal court, claims sweetgreen advertises the new menu item using the word “chipotle” in a font that is similar or identical to the burrito chain’s stylized logo. Chipotle also is accusing sweetgreen of using its trademarked “Adobo Red” color in marketing materials. In some cases, Chipotle says the product name is displayed more prominently than other source-identifying names or trademarks. In other cases, it says the term “chipotle” appears without any features that would tie the product back to sweetgreen. 

Chipotle is using sweetgreen’s social media presence to back up its claim that the rival fast-casual chain intended to capitalize on its brand. The lawsuit references a sweetgreen Instagram post announcing the launch. In response to a comment stating “Chipotle who?!” the brand replied, “You said it, not us,” and included an emoji indicating zipped lips. In another post, a user commented “@chipotle get a load of this.” 

“The user, tagging Chipotle’s Instagram account, clearly understood the association sweetgreen is trying to draw between its product, Chipotle’s products, and the famous Chipotle brand,” the complaint says. 

Chipotle also claims a promotional event for sweetgreen’s bowl–in honor of National Burrito Day on April 6–is “clearly intended” to copy and trade off its long standing National Burrito Day promotion. 

The company sent sweetgreen a cease-and-desist notice and requested it re-name the bowl prior to filing its complaint. In addition to asking the court for an injunction, it is asking for profits that Sweetgreen earns from the Chipotle Chicken Burrito Bowl. 

“We don’t typically comment on litigation, but we will say generally that we’re committed to protecting our valuable trademarks and intellectual property,” Chipotle’s chief corporate affairs officer Laurie Schalow said in a statement. “Consistent with that, we will take appropriate actions whenever necessary to protect our rights and our brand.”

A spokesperson for sweetgreen declined to comment on the litigation but told  QSR the company remains excited about the latest addition to its menu.  read moreChipotleFast CasualLegalSweetgreen