Trademark Class 31 in Nepal — Agriculture & Fresh Produce (What It Covers & How to File)

A Class 31 trademark in Nepal protects a brand for raw farm goods: fresh fruit and vegetables, unprocessed grains, seeds for planting, plants and flowers, live animals and animal feed. Frozen or cooked food is Class 29, tea and flour Class 30, medicated feed Class 5. IP Sewa's index holds 1,228 published Class 31 entries.

Key takeaways

• The current NICE classification heading covers raw farm goods, grains and seeds, fresh produce, plants, live animals, animal feed and malt.
• Processed goods move out: frozen or cooked produce to Class 29; milled rice, tea and spices to Class 30.
• Our index holds 1,228 published Class 31 entries, 18th of the 45 classes, and 76% carry a Nepali owner address.
• By goods named, 560 entries list pan masala, supari or similar products and 331 animal feed; feed has led since 2023.
• Sec. 18A(2) of the Patent, Design and Trade Mark Act 1965 requires a separate application for each class.

What does a Class 31 trademark cover in Nepal?

WIPO's current list, the 13th edition (version 2026), gives the heading as raw and unprocessed agricultural, aquacultural, horticultural and forestry products; raw and unprocessed grains and seeds; fresh fruits and vegetables, fresh herbs; natural plants and flowers; bulbs, seedlings and seeds for planting; live animals; foodstuffs and beverages for animals; malt.

Check any item on WIPO's Nice Classification page rather than an old checklist.

Nepal applies the list because Sec. 18A(1) of the Act, published by the Nepal Law Commission, lets the government classify goods and services by Nepal Gazette notice. The goods you name then set the scope of your protection.

Which Nepali farm goods sit in Class 31?

Most of what leaves a Nepali farm unprocessed. The WIPO list names fresh ginger, fresh garlic, fresh oranges, fresh mushrooms, unprocessed rice, maize, unprocessed buckwheat, live poultry, live fish and fertilised eggs for hatching.

Planting stock belongs here too: seeds for planting, seedlings, flower bulbs, trees and natural flowers. So do fodder, hay, pet food and litter for animals. Washing or waxing fresh fruit does not change that.

For seed sellers, note that a trademark protects the name and logo on the bag, not the seed variety inside it.

Where does Class 31 end and the food classes begin?

The test is preparation. Fresh ginger is Class 31, but ground ginger is Class 30. Unprocessed rice is Class 31, while milled rice sits with flour and noodles in Class 30.

Frozen, dried, preserved or cooked fruit and vegetables move to Class 29, which also holds eggs for eating. Tea and cardamom sold as a spice are Class 30.

Which other classes catch a farm business?

Fertiliser and compost are Class 1 goods; our Class 1 guide covers them. Farming, plant nursery and landscape gardening services are Class 44, and a fruit and vegetable shop is a Class 35 retail service.

Test anything unusual with the NICE class finder and the goods and services search.

Is animal feed in Class 31 or Class 5?

Ordinary feed is Class 31: fodder, poultry feed, fish meal for animal consumption and pet food. WIPO's note sends dietary supplements for animals and medicated feed to Class 5, our Class 5 guide.

The Bulletin does not always follow that line. In 2025 Kantipur Pharmaceuticals Lab Pvt. Ltd. had 20 marks for "animal feed supplements" published in Class 31, each printed in two issues. The Department decides the class, so ask before copying an older filing.

How many Class 31 marks has Nepal published?

Across 123 Industrial Property Bulletin issues, from January 2006 to 16 October 2026, our index holds 1,228 Class 31 entries. That is 1.7% of 71,842 marks, 18th of the 45 classes. A few marks appear in two issues.

The class is growing: 445 entries were published from 2006 to 2015, and 412 from 2023 alone. The busiest years were 2025 with 125 and 2024 with 115.

These are IP Sewa counts of published Bulletin entries, not official statistics, and they show no registration status. Browse the class with search by NICE class.

What do Nepal's Class 31 goods lists actually say?

Counting key words in each printed list, 560 entries name pan masala, sweet supari, gutkha, mouth fresheners or tobacco, and 331 name animal feed or feed supplements.

Only 105 name fresh produce, seeds, plants or other farm goods. Another 228 print a reference such as "AS PER HRC" in place of a goods list, or nothing at all.

Why do pan masala brands appear in Class 31?

The Bulletin does not say. What it shows is that most of the pan masala and supari entries, 310 of 560, were published from 2006 to 2015, and that single makers in Sunsari, Kapilvastu and Rupandehi have filed dozens each.

WIPO's current list has no betel-nut entry and sends tobacco to Class 34. Treat an older filing as history, not a template, and confirm the class for your product.

Who owns Class 31 marks in Nepal?

Mostly Nepali businesses. Counted by the country in each owner's printed address, 935 of the 1,228 entries (76%) are Nepali, against about 60% across all classes. India follows with 105, then China with 26 and the United States with 22; owners come from 25 countries.

The Terai leads. Matching district names in Nepali addresses, Morang has at least 131 entries, and Kathmandu and Rupandehi at least 119 each, ahead of Kapilvastu with 89.

Which companies hold the most Class 31 marks?

Grouping name spellings so one owner counts once, Janaki Products of Dharan leads with 41 pan masala and sweet supari marks from 2012 to 2015. Vikash Chemicals of Kapilvastu follows with 35, then Shreeram Tobacco Udhyog Pvt. Ltd. of Butwal with 29 and Sona Tobacco Udhyog Pvt. Ltd. with 26.

On the feed side, Sunheal Formulation of Morang holds 22 marks for animal foodstuffs and feed premixes, and Global Agro Products Pvt. Ltd. of Chitwan 13 for animal feed. Rastriya Biubijan Company Limited filed NSC SEEDS, and Bhat Bhateni Supermarket and Departmental Store Pvt. Ltd. filed three BBSM marks for fresh fruit, vegetables and mushrooms in 2025. Look up any rival with the owner search.

Can a place name protect your oranges or ginger?

Not as a geographical indication. As of our last check, Nepal has no geographical-indication law, register or certificate, so a district name on fresh produce gets no special protection. IP Sewa offers no GI service; ask us through our contact page if origin matters to you.

As a trademark, a place name alone says where the crop grew, not who grew it, and gives you little to stop a neighbour using it. Pair it with a word of your own and check it against the published trademark search.

How should you word Class 31 goods?

Name the goods in the words WIPO uses: fresh vegetables, fresh fruit, seeds for planting, seedlings, live poultry, fodder or fish meal for animal consumption. A list like "agricultural etc." hides what you actually sell.

Describe goods, not your business. In our index, 38 Class 31 entries describe a farm activity, such as running a vegetable farm, instead of naming the goods. Our goods versus services guide explains the difference.

Why file before you sell?

Title comes from registration under Sec. 16, and the first-to-file principle generally applies, so a printed sack or a market stall shows your name to anyone who could file it first.

Under Sec. 21B a foreign registration has no force in Nepal until registered here. Nepal is outside the Madrid System, so each export market needs its own filing; IP Sewa files in Nepal only.

How do you file a Class 31 trademark in Nepal?

Filing happens at the Department of Industry, one class at a time:

1. Search the name and logo. Use the published register and the conflict checker.
2. Map the range to classes. Fresh goods and feed are 31; processed food, supplements and services are separate Sec. 18A filings.
3. Write the goods list. Name the goods you sell, in published wording.
4. File the application. Sec. 17 asks for the prescribed form with four specimens of the mark, plus a power of attorney where an agent files.
5. Answer examination. Under Sec. 18(1) the Department investigates and gives you a chance to be heard.
6. Watch the Bulletin. The 90-day opposition window runs from publication; act before the deadline the Department states.
7. Collect the registration certificate. Once the registration fee is paid, the Department issues it under Sec. 18(2).

Over the 12 latest issues, our records show a median filing-to-publication gap of about 3.5 months, though about one mark in six waits over two years. An unopposed mark typically takes about 12 to 14 months to certificate, 6 to 8 in the smoothest cases; treat both as guidance, not a promise. Our trademark registration service runs each stage.

What documents does a Class 31 application need?

Under current Department practice, a Nepali company provides the form, four specimens of the mark, a board resolution and, where an agent files, a notarised power of attorney. An established business adds its latest tax clearance; a new company will not have one yet, so confirm the checklist the Department of Industry publishes.

Foreign applications go through a local representative under a power of attorney, usually with a certified English copy of any home registration certificate; a Paris Convention priority claim adds a copy of the earlier filing. Costs depend on the filing; the fee calculator shows sourced, dated government fees.

How long does a Class 31 registration last?

Seven years from registration under Sec. 18D, and the mark is renewable any number of times, seven years at a time, under Sec. 23B. Renew within 35 days after expiry; a six-month late window follows on a fine, after which the registration is cancelled automatically.

Under Sec. 18C, a mark not used within one year of registration can be cancelled after inquiry, so time the filing to the season you will actually sell. The renewal calculator works out the dates.

Common mistakes

• Filing frozen, dried or cooked produce in Class 31. Prepared food is Class 29 or 30.
• Treating feed supplements as plain feed. WIPO's note puts them in Class 5.
• Copying an old pan masala filing's class. Confirm the class for your product today.
• Writing "agricultural etc." or describing the farm. Name the goods.
• Relying on a district name alone. Nepal has no GI register.
• Ignoring a rival's new mark. The opposition window closes 90 days after publication; our opposition service can act inside it.

What does a three-class farm brand look like?

This is an illustration, not a real case. "Sunkoshi Harvest", a Sindhuli co-operative, sells fresh oranges and ginger, plans a line of dried ginger, and wants to run a plant nursery under the same name.

The oranges and fresh ginger share one Class 31 application. Dried ginger is Class 29 or 30 depending on how it is sold, and the nursery service is Class 44, so the name needs at least three Nepal filings.

Filing all three before launch avoids owning the fruit but not the products made from it.

In short

Class 31 is raw and fresh farm goods, seeds and plants, live animals and animal feed. Frozen or cooked food is 29, milled rice, tea and spices 30, supplements 5, tobacco 34 and farming services 44.

The register is mostly local and dominated by pan masala and feed, which leaves room for produce and seed brands that file early. Search first and name real goods. For a written view, our trademark search service weighs the conflicts.

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Selling produce, seeds or feed under one name? Contact IP Sewa and we will map your range to the right classes.