Sustainable Food & Drink: Leveraging IP to Gain Commercial Edge | 15.06.21

Tuesday 15th June 2021, 2:00 pm (London UK – BST) 45mins

What will the talk cover?

The food and drink sector intensely impacts and has a high dependence on the environment, economy and society.  Over recent years, environmental, lifestyle and health considerations have become key factors in driving consumer spending toward sustainably produced and packaged food and drink products. With this growing demand from consumers for greener products and an increased awareness of our collective social responsibility, food and drink businesses have a notable part to play in finding viable solutions.  Whether new or more established, businesses need to respond proactively and capitalize on any advances to gain a commercial edge.  However, this fast-moving and highly competitive market has many challenges.  How do businesses maintain economic success whilst improving environmental and social performance?

This webinar will explore the ways in which food and drink businesses are looking to drive this change, and how investment in intellectual property can assist in translating their efforts and resources into reward, leveraging their position in the market and boosting brand reputation.

Who will be speaking?

Nathalie John assists clients with all aspects of their branding, from the initial selection and clearance of a trade mark, through to filing and registration and advises on matters of enforcement, including infringement, and oppositions at UK and EU level.  She works with clients from start-ups through to multinationals across a wide range of industries, although she has particular experience in the agrochemical, medical device and cosmetics sectors.

Nathalie also has experience of securing registered design rights worldwide and of enforcing both registered and unregistered design rights in the UK and EU.

Philippa Makepeace handles cases in a range of chemical fields, having particular interest in polymer chemistry, coatings and catalysts.  She has worked with a variety of clients from start-ups to multinational companies.  Philippa is involved in the drafting and prosecution of both chemical and mechanical UK and European applications and has experience attending hearings before the European Patent Office.

Philippa has experience conducting freedom-to-operate reviews for infringement purposes.  She strives to align clients’ intellectual property protection with their commercial strategy.