Valensa/Parry: We did not infringe LycoRed’s lycopene patents

30-Jul-2012 - Last updated on 31-Jul-2012 at 13:06 GMT

Valensa, through a partnership with Parry Nutraceuticals, supplies a natural tomato lycopene to the US market which it claims “not only includes lycopene but also all the naturally occurring phytonutrients found in tomatoes including Phytoene, Phytofluene, Tocopherols and Beta-carotene and eliminates the sugar and water”.

Valensa International and partner E.I.D Parry (India) have denied allegations that their lycopene products are infringing patents owned by rival LycoRed.

In a complaint filed on March 19 in New Jersey, LycoRed accused E.I.D. Parry and US Nutraceuticals (doing business as Valensa International) of infringing three patents: 6,515,018; 5,837,311; and 5,965,183 for lycopene-containing compositions, production processes and applications.

In its response, filed on July 10, the defendants called for a declaratory judgment stating that the above patents are invalid and/or not infringed by the Parry’s products and that all claims against Parry be dismissed without prejudice.

However, speaking to NutraIngredients-USA in March, LycoRed said it was “quite convinced” Parry’s tomato lycopene complex infringed its patents and was “confident we can prove that in court”.