NZMP granted European patent for cognitive development claims in infant nutrition

NZMP, the global dairy ingredients brand of Fonterra, has announced that a European patent has been granted allowing NZMP customers the ability to position their products as beneficial for cognitive development. This provides patent protection to brands using SureStart MFGM Lipid 100 and MFGM Lipid 70.

The patent (EP 2211629) gives protection until October 2028. The patent contains claims for maternal and paediatric formulations that contain complex lipids including gangliosides for increasing cognitive development.

NZMP Marketing and Business Development Manager for Paediatric Nutrition Angela Rowan says the patent protection provides extra reassurance for the end consumers that they are purchasing a high-quality, innovative product with benefits that are backed by robust science: “There is increasing consumer awareness of the role of MFGM complex lipids such as phospholipids and gangliosides to support brain and cognitive development in infants and young children.

“Our customers will be able to talk about cognition benefits for their products that contain NZMP’s SureStart MFGM ingredients due to the patent-protection. The patent provides an added level of credibility for consumer brands.”

The granting of the patent supports NZMP’s unique value proposition for SureStart MFGM Lipid ingredients in Europe. SureStart MFGM Lipid 70 is produced by NZMP in the Netherlands and New Zealand. It reportedly provides a cost-effective solution to achieve an infant formula complex lipid composition closer to that of human milk, backed by science on the role of MFGM in infant cognitive development.

NZMP Senior Research Scientist Dr Paul McJarrow says the European patent demonstrates NZMP’s leadership in nutrition backed by innovative science: “NZMP has a great depth of knowledge around ingredients, how they behave within formulations and the science behind them.

“We’ve been manufacturing MFGM complex lipid ingredients for more than 25 years. Research and development undertaken over this time has allowed us to refine our product offerings, so that our customers can offer their consumers MFGM containing products and the benefits thereof.”

The benefits of MFGM ingredients were confirmed in an infant clinical study, presented by NZMP in 2018. It found that an infant formula fortified with a SureStart MFGM ingredient to enrich the complex lipid content, improved some measures of cognitive development in infants.

The patent is part of a family of patents that support the use of MFGM complex lipid ingredients, including SureStart MFGM Lipids in maternal and paediatric formulations for increasing cognitive development benefits. These have also been granted in China, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Philippines, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Mexico, and Russia. The granting of the patent does not guarantee freedom to operate for a specific formulation, which must be confirmed by the brand owner.

More information about cognition and the benefits of MFGM can be found in NZMP’s White Papers.

Product specific information, including the clinically tested health benefits of SureStart MFGM Lipids, can be found on the NZMP product page.

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