Nutifood Wins U.S. Patent for FDI Formula, Backing Its Push into the American Market
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued patent No. 12,527,342 B2 covering the formula, which Nutifood developed for digestive and immune support in young children. The company announced the grant at an event marking the anniversary of its GrowPLUS+ brand, attended by Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Hoang Minh, U.S. Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City Melissa A. Brown, and Glenn Millar of the California Milk Advisory Board, among other officials and partners.
What the formula covers
FDI Formula — short for Foundation of Digestion & Immunity — has been developed since 2020 by the Nutifood Nutrition Research Institute in Sweden (NNRIS). Rather than supplementing individual nutrients, the formula targets two systems at once: digestion and immunity. It pairs 2'-FL HMO, an oligosaccharide naturally present in breast milk that supports immune development, with FOS and inulin, plant-based soluble fibres that help balance gut bacteria.
According to Nutifood, the USPTO recognised the formula's proprietary ratio of 2'-FL HMO and FOS, together with a clinical evaluation system showing simultaneous benefits for digestive and immune health. A 2021 clinical study conducted by Vietnam's National Institute of Nutrition reported improvements in common childhood digestive problems — poor appetite, constipation and diarrhoea — alongside a reduced risk of respiratory infections.
Over the past five years the formula has become the nutritional base across the entire GrowPLUS+ portfolio, a leading line in Vietnam's ready-to-drink powdered milk segment for children.
A research-led pivot — and a U.S. brand
The patent reflects a broader shift at Nutifood from traditional manufacturing toward a research- and IP-led strategy, mirroring a wider trend among Asian dairy and nutrition companies competing on science rather than scale alone.
At the same event, Nutifood announced the launch of Nutifood America-Nutrition Science. The company has entered a strategic partnership with a U.S.-based partner to expand an A2 Organic dairy farm in the United States and is evaluating an investment in a spray-drying facility to supply premium A2 Organic ingredients back to Vietnam. The new brand will build on the patented FDI Formula and premium A2 protein from purebred A2 herds, with a planned premium A2 GrowPLUS+ product line.
Vice Chairman Tran Bao Minh described the patent as evidence of the company's long-term commitment to nutritional research, from age-specific formula development through clinical studies to specialised products. U.S. Consul General Melissa A. Brown welcomed Nutifood's deepening cooperation with American partners, noting that joint scientific and commercial work supports bilateral economic ties.
Context
Founded by a group of doctors and nutrition specialists more than 25 years ago, Nutifood operates certified manufacturing facilities in Vietnam, Sweden and Australia, and its portfolio spans GrowPLUS+ for children, NuVi for ages 3–12, Värna for adults and NutiMilk for families. It works with research partners including BASF, DuPont and DSM-Firmenich, and in 2025 partnered with Australia's 130-year-old ViPlus Dairy to launch the GippsNature brand.
For Vietnam's dairy sector, the USPTO grant is a notable marker: a domestically developed formula clearing one of the world's more demanding patent systems, and being used as the foundation for an outbound move into the U.S. market.
