The Delhi High Court has issued a restraining order against a health food brand, preventing it from publishing advertisements that discredit oats as a food category. This directive came in response to a lawsuit filed by Marico Limited, the company behind "Saffola Oats," which holds approximately 45% of the market share by value.

Marico argued that Alpino Health Foods Private Limited had launched a "brazen and bizarre" ad campaign that portrayed oats as a "scam" and equated eating oats to consuming "choona" (lime powder), framing it as disparaging and damaging.

Granting interim relief, Justice Mini Pushkarna found that Marico had presented a prima facie case justifying an injunction to prevent potential irreparable harm.

"Accordingly, till the next date of hearing, defendant, its directors ... are restrained from publishing or otherwise sharing, forwarding, howsoever, communicating to the public, either through social media platforms, inter alia Instagram, Facebook, Twitter etc., or in any other manner, the impugned advertisements or any part thereof, or any other advertisement or communication of a similar nature, in any language or in any manner, disparaging 'oats' as a category of foods," the judge said in the ex-parte order.

The court has also issued a summons to the defendant in response to Marico Limited’s lawsuit, which claims that any campaign undermining oats as a food product directly impacts its "Saffola" brand business.

Marico contends that the defendant's product, a breakfast cereal containing 61% rolled oats along with other ingredients, is being marketed as superior to standard oats, creating a misleading impression of selling "super oats." The plaintiff has further objected to the alleged misrepresentation of oats' nutritional value and the use of derogatory language in comparisons.