It is easy to see how the plant-based diets can help fight climate-change, by reducing greenhouse gas emissions from cattle rearing (ahem, cow farts) and production. What is hard is giving up meat — we simply enjoy it too much. In fact, companies have realised this and more are jumping on the trend of alternative proteins which replicate the visceral experience of eating meat.

Plant-based meats are a prime example. To produce these complex and highly processed foods, players in the industry tend to invest heavily in innovation. And rather quickly, they amass a wealth of intangible assets (IA) that support operations while giving them a competitive edge over other market players. 

Naturally, these unique IA become the lifeblood of such companies, who must manage them strategically or lose their competitive advantages (and opportunities). In this industry, it is common for companies with diverse expertise to collaborate across the value chain to get their products to market quickly. These partnership arrangements carry added risks that must be carefully considered when managing one’s IA.

Companies, especially start-ups, in this fledging industry face these common IA-related challenges: 

• Identifying their key IA and the associated risks;

• Devising effective strategies for protection without breaking the bank; and

• Mitigating IA risks arising from the company’s operations.

If you are a start-up or small and medium enterprise (SME) in this industry, this guide is for you. We break down the IA management process into three comprehensive parts:

1) What are some key IA that can arise from the manufacturing processes for plant-based meats

2) How best to protect these IA

3) How you can effectively manage IA risks via a simple illustration

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