The Ministry of Commerce has threatened legal action against foreign businesses that utilize Cambodian national symbols, such as the flag and temples, as logos on their goods without proper authorization. The appeal was made in response to instances involving U.S. food wholesalers and businesses exploiting images of the Angkor Wat and Bayon temples and the Cambodian national flag on their product packaging.

Citing instances from 2020 and 2021, the ministry declared that it had collaborated with the Cambodian embassy overseas to address the fraudulent use of national insignia on items in the global market. To forbid the labelling and distribution of the contested products, the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, and Cambodian embassies contacted the countries where the commodities originated.

The Ministry of Commerce has also instructed businesses and retailers to remove unauthorized logos and forbid using national insignia on their merchandise. Notably, the ministry is actively coordinating legal action against specific businesses, including California-based Seng Cheang Mong Food Corp, which uses the Bayon Temple logo on its dry noodle packaging sold in stores and online in Florida and California.

Penn Sovicheat, the ministry’s Secretary of State, said that the competent authority is working with the foreign ministry and the Cambodian embassy in the U.S. to resolve the matter. He added that to take legal action against the corporation, they are also working with Californian local authorities.

In an article published on The Post, he said: “We are working with our foreign ministry and embassy in the U.S. to resolve the issue because such incidents impact the reputation of our domestically-produced products and our country. They have used the logo of our temples on their packaging without our authorization, so we will instruct them to remove it.”

He added: “If they fail to comply, we will pursue legal action as it violates Cambodian intellectual property rights and recall merchandise already on the shelves across the country.”

Sovicheat also pointed out that similar incidents involving the exploitation of the Angkor Wat Temple insignia on product packaging have occurred in the past. However, following notification from the government and other parties, these businesses removed the emblem from their products.

- Excel V. Dyquiangco