CPC technology class · A21
A21D - Treatment Of Flour Or Dough For Baking
Treatment of flour or dough for baking, e.g. by addition of materials; baking; bakery products. 993 US utility patents granted 2015–2025, with the leading assignees and year-by-year grant trajectory.
- 993
- US patents granted
- #1/3
- in A21
- 46.8%
- A21 class share
- +16%
- 5-yr velocity
The verdict
According to USPTO PatentsView, Treatment Of Flour Or Dough For Baking ranks #458 of 670 CPC technology areas - 993 US patents granted since 2015, with recorded grant volume up 16% over five years.
- #458
- of 670 CPC technology areas
- 993
- US patents granted, 2015–2025
- General Mills
- leading assignee (56)
- +16%
- grant velocity, last 5 yrs
How A21D's grant cadence moved
Between 2020–2024, A21D recorded 478 grants versus 413 in 2015–2019 (+16% equal-window velocity). Across complete years, output peaked in 2024 at 110 grants and bottomed in 2018 at 72 (+53% peak-over-trough). Lead assignee General Mills, Inc. holds 5.6% of the class ; the top three share 10.6%.
Leaderboard read
A21D concentration, lead at 5.6%
General Mills, Inc. leads this historical grant record at 5.6% of A21D - us corporation assignees hold 50% of class grants (271 of 540). Figures describe granted US utility patents in this CPC subclass, not current investment or legal strength.
- Leader's share
- 5.6%
- Top three share
- 10.6%
- Lead over #2
- 27
56 of 993 grants
of the class's recorded grants
more grants than Novozymes A/S
Where A21D sits inside A21
Among 3 subclasses in A21 (BAKING; Edible Doughs), A21D ranks #1 and holds 46.8% of the parent class's 2,120 recorded grants. Sibling chips below are the other subclasses in the same parent class, not the nationwide volume/lead-share peers further down.
Rising assignees active in A21D
Company-wide grant multiples (2022–2024 vs 2019–2021) among assignees with ≥5 patents in this subclass. Growth is company-wide; class patent counts are subclass-specific.
- #1 Primera Technology, Inc. 11x 1 → 11 company-wide · 11 in A21D
- #2 The Fynder Group, Inc. 4.71x 7 → 33 company-wide · 10 in A21D
- #3 Puratos N.V. 2.67x 3 → 8 company-wide · 15 in A21D
- #4 Purecircle USA Inc. 2.63x 8 → 21 company-wide · 12 in A21D
- #5 EPC Natural Products Co., Ltd. 2.60x 5 → 13 company-wide · 14 in A21D
A21D grants by year, peak 2024 (110)
US utility-patent grants per year in A21D, 2015–2025 - recent five years are up 16% versus 2015–2019.
Who leads A21D?
The 12 most active assignees in Treatment OF Flour OR Dough FOR Baking, e.g. BY Addition OF MATERIALS; BAKING; Bakery Products - wider bars mean more grants
- General Mills
General Mills, Inc.
56 patents
- Novozymes A/S
Novozymes A/S
29 patents
- Societe des Produits… 20
Societe des Produits Nestle S.A.
20 patents
- Intercontinental… 20
Intercontinental Great Brands LLC
20 patents
- Generale Biscuit 18
Generale Biscuit
18 patents
- Purecircle Sdn Bhd 16
PureCircle Sdn Bhd
16 patents
- Puratos 15
Puratos N.V.
15 patents
- Epc Natural Products 14
EPC Natural Products Co., Ltd.
14 patents
- Lesaffre Et Compagnie 12
Lesaffre ET Compagnie
12 patents
- Purecircle Usa 12
Purecircle USA Inc.
12 patents
- Frito-lay North… 11
Frito-Lay North America, Inc.
11 patents
- Primera Technology 11
Primera Technology, Inc.
11 patents
What this shows General Mills is the most active filer in A21D, holding 56 of the 993 patents in this class. Concentration at the top signals how contestable this technology area is for new entrants.
View data table
| Rank | Company | Patents in A21D |
|---|---|---|
| #1 | General Mills, Inc. | 56 |
| #2 | Novozymes A/S | 29 |
| #3 | Societe des Produits Nestle S.A. | 20 |
| #4 | Intercontinental Great Brands LLC | 20 |
| #5 | Generale Biscuit | 18 |
| #6 | PureCircle Sdn Bhd | 16 |
| #7 | Puratos N.V. | 15 |
| #8 | EPC Natural Products Co., Ltd. | 14 |
| #9 | Lesaffre ET Compagnie | 12 |
| #10 | Purecircle USA Inc. | 12 |
| #11 | Frito-Lay North America, Inc. | 11 |
| #12 | Primera Technology, Inc. | 11 |
| #13 | Danisco US Inc. | 10 |
| #14 | Dupont Nutrition Biosciences APS | 10 |
| #15 | The Fynder Group, Inc. | 10 |
| #16 | The Quaker Oats Company | 8 |
| #17 | Decopac, Inc. | 8 |
| #18 | Barilla G. & R. Fratelli S.p.A. | 7 |
| #19 | Rich Products Corporation | 7 |
| #20 | Enzymotec Ltd. | 7 |
Footprint here vs. claim strategy
Each dot is a leading A21D assignee, placed by how many patents it holds in this class (horizontal) against its company-wide average claims per patent (vertical) - a read on whether the class is led by broad-but-shallow filers or focused deep-claim players.
Classes near A21D's 993-grant footprint
Nationwide nearest neighbors for A21D (#458 of 670 by volume ; lead share 5.6%) - not the A21 parent-class siblings above.
Questions about A21D
Which company holds the most patents in A21D?
Which A21D assignees grew fastest recently?
How does A21D compare inside parent class A21?
What to do with this data
A21D in context - here's where to go next.
- General Mills, Inc. leads A21D with 56 grants in this class. See full portfolio
- A21D ranks #458 of 670 by grant volume among all tracked CPC technology areas. See the ranking
- Inside parent class A21, the largest sibling subclass is A21C with 581 grants. Explore A21C
Figures reflect USPTO PatentsView grant data through 2026-05-15; pending applications not yet granted are not counted.
Methodology - A21D figures are USPTO PatentsView granted-utility totals for this subclass (993 grants in the tracked window).
Every figure on PlainPatent is rendered directly from USPTO source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on USPTO source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.