CPC technology class · A23

A23K - Fodder

Fodder. 3,247 US utility patents granted 2015–2025, with the leading assignees and year-by-year grant trajectory.

Compiled by PlainPatent · May 15, 2026

3,247
US patents granted: #3/11
in A23: 8.8%
A23 class share: -2%
5-yr velocity

The verdict

According to USPTO PatentsView, Fodder ranks #305 of 670 CPC technology areas - 3,247 US patents granted since 2015, with recorded grant volume down 2% over five years.

#305
of 670 CPC technology areas: 3,247
US patents granted, 2015–2025: Dsm Ip Assets B V
leading assignee (116): -2%
grant velocity, last 5 yrs

How A23K's grant cadence moved

Between 2020–2024, A23K recorded 1,364 grants versus 1,393 in 2015–2019 (-2% equal-window velocity). Across complete years, output peaked in 2018 at 309 grants and bottomed in 2023 at 253 (+22% peak-over-trough). Lead assignee DSM IP Assets B.V. holds 3.6% of the class ; the top three share 8.6%.

Leaderboard read

A23K concentration, lead at 3.6%

DSM IP Assets B.V. leads this historical grant record at 3.6% of A23K - foreign corporation assignees hold 49% of class grants (977 of 1,993). Figures describe granted US utility patents in this CPC subclass, not current investment or legal strength.

Leader's share: 3.6%
Top three share: 8.6%
Lead over #2: 31

Where A23K sits inside A23

Among 11 subclasses in A23 (Foods OR FOODSTUFFS; Treatment Thereof, NOT Covered BY Other Classes), A23K ranks #3 and holds 8.8% of the parent class's 36,876 recorded grants. Sibling chips below are the other subclasses in the same parent class, not the nationwide volume/lead-share peers further down.

A23L 12,738 A23V 9,116 A23B 2,807 A23G 1,990 A23P 1,818 A23C 1,603 A23D 1,053 A23F 971

Rising assignees active in A23K

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 International N&hdenmark APS 6.00x 0 → 6 company-wide · 5 in A23K
#2 Alzchem Trostberg GmbH 5.00x 1 → 5 company-wide · 6 in A23K
#3 Lee Tech LLC 5.00x 1 → 5 company-wide · 5 in A23K
#4 THE Better Meat Co. 4.00x 1 → 4 company-wide · 6 in A23K
#5 Specialites Pet Food 4.00x 1 → 4 company-wide · 5 in A23K

A23K grants by year, peak 2018 (309)

US utility-patent grants per year in A23K, 2015–2025 - recent five years are down 2% versus 2015–2019.

Dsm Ip Assets B V

116
Novozymes A/S

85
Societe des Produits…

77
Purina Animal…

70
Nestec

52
Mars Incorporated

52
Hill's Pet Nutrition

48
Cj Cheiljedang

40
Commonwealth…

38
Dupont Nutrition…

32
Monsanto Technology

24
Cargill Incorporated

23

What this shows Dsm Ip Assets B V is the most active filer in A23K, holding 116 of the 3,247 patents in this class. Concentration at the top signals how contestable this technology area is for new entrants.

View data table

Top patent holders in CPC subclass A23K
Rank	Company	Patents in A23K
#1	DSM IP Assets B.V.	116
#2	Novozymes A/S	85
#3	Societe des Produits Nestle S.A.	77
#4	Purina Animal Nutrition LLC	70
#5	Nestec S.A.	52
#6	Mars, Incorporated	52
#7	Hill's Pet Nutrition, Inc.	48
#8	CJ Cheiljedang Corporation	40
#9	Commonwealth Scientific AND Industrial Research Organisation	38
#10	Dupont Nutrition Biosciences APS	32
#11	Monsanto Technology LLC	24
#12	Cargill, Incorporated	23
#13	iNtRON Biotechnology, Inc.	22
#14	Ceres, Inc.	19
#15	Ajinomoto Co., Inc.	18
#16	ICM, Inc.	18
#17	Novus International, Inc.	18
#18	Wenger Manufacturing Inc.	17
#19	Colgate-Palmolive Company	16
#20	The United States of America, as represented by the Secretary of Agriculture	15

Footprint here vs. claim strategy

Each dot is a leading A23K 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.

Top 14 A23K assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in A23K. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Classes near A23K's 3,247-grant footprint

Nationwide nearest neighbors for A23K (#305 of 670 by volume ; lead share 3.6%) - not the A23 parent-class siblings above.

Nearest by grant volume

G10H 3,197 F24S 3,307 B28B 3,309 C22B 3,163

Nearest by lead-assignee share

F23L 3.6% G10K 3.6% Y10S 3.6% C01F 3.6%

Questions about A23K

Which company holds the most patents in A23K?

DSM IP Assets B.V. leads A23K with 116 patents (3.6% of the subclass). By PatentsView assignee type, foreign corporations account for 49% of class grants.

Which A23K assignees grew fastest recently?

Among assignees with ≥5 grants in A23K, International N&hdenmark APS shows the highest company-wide grant multiple (6.00x: 0 grants in 2019–2021 → 6 in 2022–2024) while holding 5 patents in this subclass. Growth is company-wide, not class-only.

How does A23K compare inside parent class A23?

Inside A23 (Foods OR FOODSTUFFS; Treatment Thereof, NOT Covered BY Other Classes), A23K ranks #3 of 11 subclasses by grant volume and holds 8.8% of the parent class total. The largest sibling is A23L (12,738 grants).

What to do with this data

A23K in context - here's where to go next.

DSM IP Assets B.V. leads A23K with 116 grants in this class. See full portfolio
A23K ranks #305 of 670 by grant volume among all tracked CPC technology areas. See the ranking
Inside parent class A23, the largest sibling subclass is A23L with 12,738 grants. Explore A23L

Figures reflect USPTO PatentsView grant data through 2026-05-15; pending applications not yet granted are not counted.

Methodology - A23K figures are USPTO PatentsView granted-utility totals for this subclass (3,247 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.