{"id":4150,"date":"2022-09-18T13:49:16","date_gmt":"2022-09-18T13:49:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forbes.co.il\/e\/?p=4150"},"modified":"2022-09-19T12:45:43","modified_gmt":"2022-09-19T12:45:43","slug":"trendsetting-innovation-alternative-proteins-are-spearheading-groundbreaking-developments-in-the-world-of-patents","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forbes.co.il\/e\/trendsetting-innovation-alternative-proteins-are-spearheading-groundbreaking-developments-in-the-world-of-patents\/","title":{"rendered":"Trendsetting Innovation: Alternative Proteins are Spearheading Groundbreaking Developments in the World of Patents"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Contributors<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A patent is a legal document granting its owner exclusivity over an invention: an innovation that represents a new inventive technological progress., Various entities pursue patent protection to safeguard their inventions from imitation and mimicry, increasing the likelihood of financial return. Although a company\u2019s success will not necessarily depend on the nature of the patents it registers, owning a strong patent portfolio can provide a company with a competitive advantage and increase its intrinsic value in the eyes of potential investors and partners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the alternative protein field, the world of patents is still in its infancy, and companies in the field face unique challenges in obtaining protection for their inventions. Alternative protein companies are reshaping technologies to produce different food products that have not changed substantially over the years. For example, when soybeans are ground and crushed, and water is added, we get soy milk. It is a common product produced in a familiar way that does not express substantial innovation. But when a food engineer extracts proteins from the soy plant and organizes them in a way that does not occur naturally in soy, imitating the fibrous texture of meat, a patent-worthy technological innovation is born.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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How do you define well-known ingredients rearranged in an original and innovative way?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let us use an example to illustrate this, using a staple product – a chicken egg. How many dishes can be derived from the same egg? We can easily think of it served sunny-side-up, scrambled, soft and hard-boiled, and as an omelet. What do all these dishes have in common? Their list of ingredients: a yolk and an egg white. What differentiates them? the biological arrangement, and sometimes, coagulation state of each of these components. This can be demonstrated by a soft-boiled egg: the protein hardens and envelops the yolk, which remains liquid. In contrast, in a scrambled egg, the two ingredients are mixed and are no longer in a liquid state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As these dishes have been public knowledge and are known by all, they cannot be patented.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the alternative protein industry, companies are working toward discovering new sources for components that were previously only found naturally. Additionally, the assembly process of these ingredients is developed in forms that aren\u2019t recognized today. But that’s not all, when the new ingredients are utilized, it will become necessary to examine their organoleptic (taste, smell, and appearance) and rheological (texture) properties \u2013 in order to decide whether they form an alternative to an animal product or qualify as an entirely new category.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The list of ingredients is usually known in the field of alternative protein, and the innovation lies in the formulation<\/em> | Photo: Shutterstock<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Reinventing Innovations<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The alternative protein industry is presenting new challenges to the world of patents:<\/p>\n\n\n\n