Reminds me of McVitie's challenge to get the Jaffa Cake on the zero VAT tariff for cakes, even if technically it's a biscuit (that carries a higher VAT rate).
McVitie's won with the astute argument that, unlike other biscuits, when a Jaffa Cake goes stale it becomes hard like a cake, not soft.
In the first tribunal Walkers argued that Sensations are not crisps because:
> They are not ready for human consumption
I understand why they made the argument but I couldn't understand how. I tracked down the judgement from last year:
> Walkers initially argued that the products were designed to be used with dips, chutneys and pickles, and as a side with a meal. On this basis, they contended that the products required further preparation before consumption and so did not fall within Note 5.
> In the hearing, Walkers accepted that there was nothing on the consumer packaging that stated that any preparation was required. It was agreed that the packaging would be required to state any such necessary preparation. We also noted that Walkersâ own promotional material showed people eating the product directly from the package, without any dips etc, and without a meal. On that basis, and in the light of case law on âpreparationâ in this context, Walkers agreed that they were no longer relying on this argument.
> I shall not today attempt further to define the kinds of material I understand to be embraced within that shorthand description ["potato crisps"], and perhaps I could never succeed in intelligibly doing so. But I know it when I see it, and the [delicious snack] involved in this case is [quite definitely] that
I have no comment on the legalities, but I have to insist that the lime and coriander variety are amazing.
I always thought poppadoms were made from fermented lentil dough, so I looked it up and they're made with basically anything - even potato!
How can they talk about Walker's Poppadom Chips, without mentioning Poppadom Elvis[0]?
Once you've seen it, it's hard to get out of your head.
> I care not when you call me big poppadom
Huge credit to whoever came up with this subtitle
I wonder why the UK has a 20% tariff on potato chips, er I mean crisps. Is it to stop from being overrun by clearly superior Irish crisps (O'Donnells Ballymaloe Relish and Cheddar in particular)?
This article implies that Discos are not crisps. Surely this is madness?
Quite an amusing account.
TIL that Walkers in England is different than Walkerâs Shortbread, the latter being the makers of really tasty goods in attractive keepsake tins. I was going to pick one up as a commemoration of King Charles III.
Also, papadums are spelled differently by Indian restaurants around here, because it is, after all, in transliteration.
This was inevitable as mass-produced snack food is influenced and derived from foreign cuisine. Papadums served in a restaurant are about 6â diameter, puffy, thin and delicate. Caraway seeds and other bumps are often noticeable. Always need a good chutney to dip into.
The Indian groceries also sell shelves full of savory crispy snacks that run the gamut. I hope that Walkers can hold their niche amongst cricket fans.
> The Upper Tribunal â having already determined potato granules to be part of the extended potato universe â didnât like this line of argument, judging that the potato starch and granules must be combined to judge overall potatitude.
Okay, I'm sold. When I have the money, I'll get a subscription to the FT.
On a less jocular note, this article is a good reminder that, contrary to most discussion here on HN, laws aren't algorithms that the powers that be execute against the world, but are rather heuristics that courts have to interpret in the context of specific cases.