Dairy farmers claim botched graphics destroyed marketing campaign

SHERMAN -- Attempting to revive its dairy media campaign, the Southwest Dairy Farmers secured the rights to feature images of Miss America and intended to plaster her image on its tanker trucks.

The group claims that after spending thousands of dollars designing and applying wraps to their milk tanker trucks, the wraps starting failing after only a few months, tarnishing the positive image of milk and injuring the group's good will and business reputation.

Southwest Dairy Museum Inc. doing business as Southwest Dairy Farmers filed suit against Signature Graphics Inc. and Dave Parnell on Jan. 20 in the 62nd District Court, Hopkins County. The defendant removed the case to the federal court in the Sherman Division of the Eastern District of Texas, Sherman on Feb. 22.

The Southwest Dairy Farmers is supported by individual Texas dairy producers to conduct promotional and educational efforts for milk and dairy products over a seven state region. The group states they develop and protect their brand and image to promote a positive image of milk.

According to the complaint, in the spring of 2008 the plaintiff contracted Signature Graphics to provide 300 tanker wraps and secured a protective warranty against the products in case of failure.

Within a few months the wraps were failing, and the defendant attempted to fix the problem by providing a replacement order but according to the plaintiff, those also failed.

In the lawsuit, the dairy farmers assert the defendant was negligent in the design and manufacture of the wraps and is seeking more than $485,000 in compensatory damages.

The plaintiff alleges that Signature Graphics committed a breach of contract, negligent misrepresentation, breach of express and implied warranties of merchantability and breach of warranty of fitness for a particular purpose.

Fort Worth attorney James D. Bradbury is representing the plaintiff.

U.S. District Judge Richard A. Schell will preside over the litigation.

Case No 4:10cv00072