Cadbury owner demands small Devon vegan brand Moo Free pull its White Choccy Snowballs from shelves before Christmas

Mondelez International — the confectionery giant behind Cadbury and Toblerone — sent a legal letter to Devon-based family business Moo Free accusing it of trademark infringement, citing a trademark on the word "Snowball" registered for chocolate confectionery in 2001. The demand arrived just before the Christmas trading period, threatening to pull one of the vegan brand's key seasonal lines from Asda, Waitrose and Amazon shelves.

Moo Free co-founder Mike Jessop said he had 'never even heard of' Cadbury Snowballs — and is lactose intolerant, so cannot even try one.

Jessop questioned whether 'snowball' is specific enough to trademark, telling reporters: 'It is not like we are making a Freddo.'

The row is Mondelez's second legal assault on a small British chocolate brand in days, after it sued Catherine's Originals over its Toblerone-shaped O'Bar.