Chicago, Nov. 7 - Procter & Gamble Co said Friday the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office confirmed the validity of its patent for a plastic coffee container for a second time, giving it confidence it will prevail in its lawsuits against Kraft Foods Inc.
P&G sued Kraft in August 2007, alleging Kraft's Maxwell House plastic coffee container infringed P&G's patent for its Folgers coffee containers.
In October 2007, that lawsuit was put on hold by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California pending the outcome of a review by the U.S. patent office.
Kraft called the announcement from the U.S. patent office "but one procedural step in the patent litigation process."
The full review by the U.S. patent office's board of patent appeals and interferences has not yet taken place, Kraft said.
The food maker said it does not infringe patents and would present its case to the patent office's board and, if necessary, the Federal Circuit Appeals Court.
P&G started selling Folgers coffee in plastic containers in 2003. The company says the new packaging has helped boost sales for Folgers over the past five years.
P&G sold Folgers, the largest U.S. coffee business, to JM Smucker Co Thursday.
P&G said it has multiple intellectual property lawsuits pending against Kraft and would continue to lead the litigation against Kraft in coordination with Smucker.
In October, P&G widened its patent infringement lawsuit against Kraft to include some coffees used in Kraft's single- serving Tassimo coffee system. In September, P&G filed another suit against Kraft dealing with a new four-pound plastic container for Maxwell House coffee.