An evolving focus on intellectual property helps ensure product commercialization and ecosystem growth

Developing and commercializing intellectual property (IP) is critical to the success of any company. It protects what they’ve created, while making it available to customers in both domestic and international markets.

Protein Industries Canada has made it a priority to ensure the companies it works with have been thinking about their IP strategically since the organization launched in 2018. How it does this has evolved over the years, however, as both the companies and organization itself have evolved.

“What we have found over time is a real growth in IP awareness,” Protein Industries Canada Director of Data and Intellectual Property Jennifer Jannuska said. “Companies engaging with us today are coming in with more detailed IP plans — sometimes on their own, sometimes at our urging. We want them to see the link between the developmental work they are doing in our projects and the importance of crystallizing their innovations with IP — and we see this resonating with companies in our projects.”

This growing awareness has meant that while Protein Industries Canada continues to work with partner companies on developing their IP, the organization is also able to increase its focus on wider IP support work. This includes the recent Patent Landscape Analysis Report, available on Protein Industries Canada’s Member Portal, and an upcoming suite of trade secret resources. That’s in addition to Jannuska’s knowledge base, which is available to Protein Industries Canada members both in and outside of projects.

According to Jannuska, members can expect more such support to be rolled out in the coming years.

“I think that more IP development supports, and supports for greater commercialization of IP, are the next piece of that puzzle. Building blocks for this are already in place at Protein Industries Canada,” she said. “We are very interested in connecting our companies to more avenues of funding support for IP costs, which can be considerable, advice and mentoring, and commercialization resources.”

Already, the effects of a focus on IP — both within Protein Industries Canada and among partner companies — can be seen across the ecosystem. During the organization’s first round of funding, partner companies created 455 unique IP assets in the course of their projects, more than double what was anticipated.

“There is no IP without the sweat, the tears, the trials, the false-starts, the equipment headaches, the testing, the feedback, the market building. It is humbling and inspiring to see how much work goes into every milestone of a project. The IP outcomes just show how much intangible value comes from their hard work in tangible spaces,” Jannuska said.

With a continued focus on IP among both Protein Industries Canada and its partner companies, the ecosystem’s strength in product commercialization can continue to grow—helping Canada reach its full potential in the ingredient processing, food manufacturing and bioproducts space.