21st Century Business Herald reporter Liu Jingxi from Guangzhou

On the evening of May 25, Chen Ke Ming Food issued a statement regarding the "handmade" trademark issue, stating that the company deeply reflects and takes the following actions: First, effective immediately, it will fully stop the production and sale of products with "handmade" related descriptions; second, it will simultaneously initiate rectification of related product packaging, promotional content, and communication materials; third, it will establish a special team to conduct a comprehensive review of all categories of trademarks and promotional materials.

The reporter found on shopping platforms that currently, the "Chen Ke Ming Handmade Wide Noodles" has been removed from the Chen Ke Ming flagship store.

As of the close on May 26, Ke Ming Food's stock closed at 7.89 yuan/share, down 3.07%. Since May, Ke Ming Food's stock price has fallen by more than 13%.

Previously, according to CCTV News, a product packaging for a handmade wide noodle prominently featured the words "handmade" in large letters at the center, accompanied by an image of a rolling pin. The advertisement also stated, "Just like the handmade noodles made by mom in childhood." Both visually and textually, it easily associates with traditional handmade noodle-making techniques. Staff from the customer service of Chen Ke Ming Food Co., Ltd. stated that this handmade noodle is actually machine-made, and "handmade" is just a name.

It is noteworthy that "Chen Ke Ming Handmade" was applied for trademark registration on February 20, 2020, and was declared invalid "ex officio" on October 24, 2025, meaning it was invalidated directly by the trademark management department without a third-party application. According to legal provisions, a trademark declared invalid cannot be used as a registered trademark after the decision takes effect, nor can it mislead consumers.

As more and more brands are exposed for playing "word games," "clever trademarks" have become a key target for regulatory authorities.

At the end of April this year, the Trademark Office of the National Intellectual Property Administration officially launched a "Clever Trademark" governance column on the China Trademark Network, publishing typical trademark cases and continuously updating the list of trademarks that have been declared invalid ex officio for being deceptive, including "Chen Ke Ming Handmade," "White Elephant Half Bag," "Dezi Tu," and other widely discussed "clever trademarks."

In addition, according to Article 10 of the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China, "marks that are deceptive and likely to cause the public to misidentify the quality or characteristics of the goods or their origin" shall not be used as trademarks. Experts point out that "clever trademarks" constitute fraud and can be ordered to be corrected by market regulatory authorities, with fines imposed depending on the circumstances In addition to violating trademark law, some companies have registered words that describe processes, quality, and functions as trademarks and prominently used them in their packaging and advertising, which exceeds the trademark's function of "identifying the source of goods" and constitutes commercial promotion behavior. In this process, if it leads to consumer misunderstanding, it may violate multiple laws such as advertising law, anti-unfair competition law, and consumer rights protection law, and legal responsibility should be pursued according to the law