Signal: Health central to ice-cream makers’ patents

Overall, the number of patent applications related to ice cream fell year on year in the 12 months to the end of June.

Health and wellness continues to be at the forefront of the patent applications lodged in the ice-cream sector, data suggests.

In the year to the end of June, more than a quarter of the applications were centred on health and wellness, data by GlobalData, Just Food’s parent, shows.

The period saw 602 applications and 159 were classified as being related to health and wellness. For example, in March, Nestlé – which runs its ice-cream business through the Froneri joint venture – lodged an application in Australia for a “plant-based soft serve or frozen dessert made from cereal and legumes”, the research group said.

GlobalData’s Patent Analytics database contains global figures on the patents filed – and granted – by businesses across multiple sectors. Each patent is classified by theme, including those linked to areas such as the environment or health and wellness.

In the year to the end of June 2022, 820 patents related to ice cream were requested. Of those, 175 (21%) were linked to health and wellness, GlobalData figures suggest.

Over the 12 months to the end of June this year, China’s COFCO Corp. sent in the most applications (26), followed by Unilever – the world’s largest ice cream maker – with 21.

China topped the list geographically, with 176 patents filed.