Agrifood: Exploration in the ASEAN Region

In September 2024, WIPO launched the Patent Landscape Report on Agrifood, which analyzed the global patent trends and emerging technologies in the Agrifood sector. Now, we are turning our attention to the ASEAN region to explore the patent landscape in this area. Although patenting activity in the ASEAN region is relatively low compared to many other parts of the world, the Agrifood sector is vital to the region because it underpins food security, sustains livelihoods for millions, and drives economic growth in one of the world's most dynamic agricultural hubs. So, who is filing Agrifood-related patents in the ASEAN region? Who are the innovators in this region? And, compared to global trends, what technologies are they focusing on?

The Agrifood sector in the ASEAN region demonstrates a higher global share of patent activity, both in filings as a target market and in locally generated inventions, compared to the overall average across all technical fields

In the ASEAN region, the total number of patent families filed in Agrifood sector is 47,664, representing 1.27% of all global Agrifood patent families. This is higher than the ASEAN region's share of patent families in all technological fields globally, which is 0.62%.

Furthermore, the number of Agrifood-related patent families invented in the ASEAN region is 14,185, making up 0.38% of all global Agrifood patent families. This figure also surpasses the ASEAN region's share of patent families invented in all technological fields globally, which is 0.22%.

These figures demonstrate that, whether as a target market or a source of invention, the Agrifood sector's global presence in the ASEAN region is stronger than the average across all technological fields.

The patent filing activities in Agrifood in the ASEAN region far exceed the local invention activities, reflecting the strong global interest in the region's market potential

The ASEAN region has seen 32,240 AgriTech-related patent families filed, a figure 4.3 times higher than the 7,435 AgriTech-related patent families invented in the region. Similarly, 19,114 FoodTech-related patent families have been filed, which is 2.5 times the 7,765 FoodTech-related patent families invented locally. These numbers highlight that external patent applicants place significant importance on the Agrifood market in the ASEAN region.

Among the 23 sub-domains of Agrifood, global patent applicants show greater interest in advanced fields such as Robotics and drones, Crop adaptation and genetics, and Precision agriculture, while local innovation is relatively limited. In contrast, local innovators are more active in sub-domains like Soil and fertilizer management and Food technology

In the sub-domains of Robotics and drones, Crop adaptation and genetics, and Precision agriculture, the ratio of patents filed in the ASEAN region to patents invented in the region is 8.5, 8.4, and 7.0, respectively. This indicates that enterprises outside the ASEAN region are particularly interested in the local market for these technologies, while local innovation in these fields remains relatively limited.

In contrast, in the sub-domains of Soil and fertilizer management, Food technology, and Food chemistry, the ratios of patents filed in the ASEAN region to locally originated inventions are lower, at 2.0, 2.3, and 2.4, respectively. This suggests that while foreign patent filings still outpace local innovation in these areas, local innovators are relatively more active compared to other technological fields.

The Relative Specialization Index (RSI) compare two or more countries’ published patenting activity within the same technology area. RSI is a measure of a country’s share of patent families in a particular field of technology as a fraction of that country’s share of patent families in all fields of technology. In other words, RSI has the advantage of providing a comparison of two countries’ patenting activity in a technology relative to those countries’ overall patenting activity. The effect of this is to highlight countries which have a greater specialism of the technology area studied than expected from their overall level of patenting.

Based on the Relative Specialization Index (RSI) of ASEAN countries across all of the Agrifood sub-domains, the Philippines and Indonesia exhibit the highest RSI in Supply chain, Food chemistry, and Food technology. This is closely linked to the active participation of local universities and research institutions in patenting activities.

Singapore, on the other hand, shows the highest RSI in IoT-related sub-domains such as Mapping/Imagery, Precision agriculture, and Robotics and drones, compared to other countries in the ASEAN region.

The United States, Japan, Republic of Korea, Germany, and Switzerland are the primary sources of patents in the Agrifood sector in the ASEAN region

Global innovators in the Agrifood sector demonstrate a strong focus on the ASEAN market. Leading contributors to Agrifood patents in the region include non-ASEAN countries such as the United States, Japan, Republic of Korea, Germany, and Switzerland. Local countries such as the Philippines, Indonesia, and Thailand also feature among the top ten sources of patent applications within the ASEAN region.

Patents originating in the ASEAN region are predominantly filed locally. However, a closer examination of invention locations by country reveals distinct patent filing strategies across the region.

For example, Agrifood-related patents originating from Singapore comprise 2,119 patent families. Of these, 1,528 were filed internationally via WIPO, 1,239 were published in the United States, 955 in China, and only 793 were published in Singapore itself. This highlights the strong focus of Singaporean inventors on securing global protection for their innovations.

In contrast, applicants from Thailand, Viet Nam, the Philippines, and Malaysia show a preference for domestic filings. The majority of patents invented within their respective countries are published locally.

The top patent applicants in the Philippines and Indonesia are universities and research institutions, but these institutions only file patents locally. In contrast, applicants from Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand place greater emphasis on protecting their innovations globally

In the ASEAN region, the top patent applicants in the Agrifood sector can be categorized into several types:

• Food and food chemistry companies: Examples include Nestlé, Suntory, and CJ Cheil Jedang.
• Biotechnology and healthcare companies: Examples include Hoffmann-La Roche, Genentech, and Janssen Pharmaceutica.
• Agrochemical companies: Examples include Bayer, BASF, and Syngenta.

Nestlé stands out as a dominant leader in food and food chemistry companies, consistently ranking among the top patent applicants in multiple ASEAN countries. Biotechnology and healthcare companies focus their applications primarily in Singapore and Viet Nam. Agrochemical companies, which specialize in pesticides, fertilizers, and seed technologies, are active across several countries in the region. This aligns with the high agricultural output and strong demand for advanced technologies in ASEAN.

In contrast to global trends, agricultural machinery manufacturers and ICT companies, which contribute significantly to Agrifood innovation worldwide, are less prominent in the ASEAN region. Among agricultural machinery manufacturers, only Japan's Kubota and Shimano make notable appearances, ranking in the top 10 in Thailand and Malaysia, respectively. For ICT companies, Qualcomm is the sole significant presence, ranking 6th in Indonesia and 17th across the entire ASEAN region.

The top patent applicants in the Philippines and Indonesia are universities and research institutions, but these institutions only file patents locally. Applicants from Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand place greater emphasis on protecting their innovations globally

Universities and research institutions in the Philippines and Indonesia have demonstrated strong performance in patent filings. Notably, over 60% of the Agrifood-related patents from these institutions were published after 2019, reflecting a significant surge in innovation activities in recent years.

In contrast, the majority of applicants from Malaysia, Viet Nam, Thailand, and Singapore have less than 60% of their patent portfolios published after 2019. This indicates a steadier, more consistent growth in innovation rather than a recent concentration of activity. However, certain Singaporean technology companies stand out with a notably higher proportion of patents published after 2019. This trend is closely tied to the rapid rise and widespread adoption of IoT technologies in the Agrifood sector in recent years.

Looking at the patent family sizes of local applicants, it is evident that applicants from Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand tend to focus on protecting their innovations within their domestic markets. In contrast, applicants from Singapore and Malaysia demonstrate a more global perspective, placing greater emphasis on securing international patent protection to safeguard their innovations on a worldwide scale.