Examples: Food Packaging Patent

In addition to patenting your food recipe, method of making food, and your "technical effect", you are also able to patent your unique food packaging.

Rolo

For years chocolate lovers thought ROLO CHOCOLATE was patented. Rolo prominently marked the roll "Patented". But, what Rollo really patented was:

"Chocolate wrapped in foil and a paper sleeve"

Yes!, Rolo's patent no. GB503358 entitled "Improvements in and relating to the wrapping of chocolates" claimed "A method of wrapping chocolates consisting in wrapping a pile of circular discs of chocolate in a lead foil, and then placing the wrapped pile friction‐tight in an outer tubular sleeve of paper so that the wrapped pile may, when desired, be slidden axially within the outer tubular sleeve." In English: … Chocolate wrapped in foil and a paper sleeve.

This is a great example of patenting a small aspect of your product, and then using the patent to scare‐off competitors and give you time (and space) to entrench your product in the market.

Lifesaver sweet

What did LIFESAVER patent? Everyone thought that Lifesaver patented "The life‐saving breathing hole in the middle" ‐ isn't that why it's called "LifeSaver"? No, they didn't. They only patented:

the "Wrapper with a tear strip" that makes it so easy to get to the little LifeSavers.

But, by encouraging this ruse, LifeSaver rooted itself in the sweets market.

LifeSaver is our winner in the category: Using Patents for Marketing Purposes.

LifeSaver's patent no. US2926833 entitled "Life saver package" claimed "A package comprising a sheet of wrapping material wrapped around a stack of cylindrical articles, the opposite ends of the material being folded tightly against the opposite ends of the stack, thereby defining annular creases extending through parallel planes normal to the longitudinal axis of the package, an opening thread arranged at one end of the package along the inner side of the wrapping material adjacent one of the folded ends and substantially in alignment with the annular crease at the end, the thread being secured to the wrapping material, the opening thread being arranged substantially in the plane of the crease, one end of the opening thread protruding laterally from the package, and the opening thread serving as an opening element for the package, whereby pulling of one end of the thread effects a tearing of the wrapper along the line of securement thereby removing the corresponding folded end for access into the package." In English … Wrapper with a tear strip.