A controversial Surrey grocery store is at the centre of an international name war between Fiji and Canada.

Fiji’s interm military regime has mounted a challenge against Kohinoor Grocery for using the Fiji name on its tinned fish — a misleading trademark gimmick, they say, given that the tuna inside is actually from Chile.

But Mohammed Attaullah, owner of Kohinoor Grocery says as long as the cans of fish say ‘Product of Chile,’ it should not matter that he uses the brand name, Fiji Ocean.

The government is waging its legal battle with the local distributor on several fronts. As only some of the fish Attaullah imports is from Fiji, the Government of Fiji accuses him of deceptive practices.

It has also deemed ‘Fiji Ocean’ an unregisterable trademark name, even though Fiji uses the name to certify a variety of export goods and services as Fijian.

Fiji’s solicitor-general, Christopher Pryde, has already lodged objections with Canada’s Intellectual Property Registry.

A decision is yet to be made by that regulatory body.

If his case fails, Attaullah says he will have to change his brand name to something like ‘Island Ocean’ — a poor substitute given the cache of the name Fiji.

"I bought the Fiji name because we have about 80,000 Fijians living in Vancouver," said Attaullah, himself a Fijian, from the back of his grocery warehouse in Surrey. "I want to use the name so that more people learn about the good things Fiji has to offer."

Attaullah also says he’s going to boycott all Fijian products if he can’t use the country’s name on his wares. His company, which also operates as South Seas Enterprises, imports about $3 million in food items from Fiji every year, from biscuits to lemons.

The trademark battle involves a gambit of issues, from importation regulations to copyright policies.

Further complicating matters, Attaullah says he is a victim of double standards.

The blue mackerel and tuna exported from Fiji are in fact from other parts of the world, he says, and only packaged in Fiji.

"Fijian companies buy their fish from the U.S., Chile and all over the world," he told the South Asian Post. "They then package it in Fiji and stick their name on it. Many products have labels claiming to be from Fiji but how could they be when the fish is not even originally from there?"

Cheryl Brown Irava, spokesperson for the Fijian Embassy in Washington, would not comment on the details of a case being pursued by Fiji’s Foreign Affairs Department, citing state-to-state confidentiality.

Attaullah, who has owned Kohinoor Grocery since 1986, is originally from Suva, Fiji. He has been in the import business for a long time, and "loves it," proud to bring Fijian products to Canadian shelves.

However, his entrepreneurial pursuits have cost him dearly.

On October 3, 2007, the company pleaded guilty to importing mackerel into Canada without notifying import inspectors with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

Kohinoor was slapped with a $20,000 fine.

"The CFIA said the quality was no good so I had to ship it back and I got fined," he said. "Authorities are very strict and you cannot play with the government here."

And again, in 2000, Attaullah bought two containers of tinned mackerel from a Fijian company, but they too were rejected by CFIA.

After repeated failed attempts to bring in tinned fish from Fiji, Attaullah says the country’s poor quality of fish is damaging his business.

So he has switched to importing blue mackerel from Chile, which he says is cheaper and of higher quality.

Nevertheless, Attaullah continues to use the trademark Fiji Ocean because it is a brand name his customers are familiar with. As long as his labels clearly say, ‘Product of Chile,’ there should be no problem, he insists.

Labeling has been an issue for Kohinoor Grocery in the past. In 2002, as reported in theSouth Asian Post, the company distributed cans of Fiji Ocean pilchards dressed up as Japanese fish, when in fact they were nothing more than Lucky Star pilchards from South Africa.

Last month, when Fiji’s interm government learned that the small Surrey company wanted to use the name Fiji on its products, the Foreign Affairs Ministry and the Attorney General’s office swiftly took action and filed a notice of opposition with the Canadian Intellectual Property Office.

It is unclear when Attaullah will find out the fate of his troubled fish brand name, but he thinks the Fijian government has it all backwards.

"My brand name is good advertising," he says. "Everyone will know about Fiji from Vancouver to Toronto.

"The Fijian government should be very happy about this. In fact, they should pay me."