US intellectual property regulators are rejecting General Mills’ bid to trademark the yellow background color on boxes of Cheerios cereal.

The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board on Tuesday set aside the cereal maker’s two-year quest to trademark “the color yellow appearing as the predominant uniform background color” on boxes of “oat-based breakfast cereal.” A contrary ruling could have given the Cheerios maker an exclusive right to yellow, “toroidal-shaped” boxes of oat cereal.

General Mills loses bid to trademark this box of yellow “toroidal-shaped, oat-based breakfast cereal.” (credit: Trademark Trial and Appeal Board)

General Mills argued that it deserved to be awarded the trademark status because “consumers have come to identify the color yellow” on boxes of oats cereal with “the Cheerios brand.” It has been marketed in yellow packaging since 1945, with billions in sales.