Martha, I am so glad you caught that mistake I made.  I should have said that
Nestle and Novartis have patents on human milk components (Nestle has it on
human lactoferrin and Novartis(Ciba-Geigy) has it on HMFG (Human Milk Fat
Globule).  I think, Martha, I am the wrong person to ask about how this works
because I am totally amazed that companies, universities and governments can
have patents on human life forms.  But you see in 1980 the Supreme Court
ruled that life forms could be patented and thus we have the patenting of
human milk components.  What does it mean?  I think it means breastfeeding is
in big trouble.  I get the feeling from your post that you don't believe me.
If you want to look at a patent (one of about 600) on human milk, please take
the time to go to the patent office web site.
http://www.uspto.gov/patft/index.html

Look at patent # 4977137 called "Lactoferrin as a dietary ingredient
promoting the growth of the gastrointestinal tract."  The inventor is Buford
Nichols and the patent rights (royalties) are assigned to Baylor College of
Medicine.

The abstract states, "Disclosed is milk lactoferrin as a dietary ingredient
which promotes growth of the gastrointestinal tract of human infants and
newborn nonhuman animals immediatedly on birth when added to an infant
formula or given separately as a dietary supplement thus reducing chronic
diarrhea, assisting in the management of short gut syndrome, and avoiding, at
least to some extent chronic intractable diarrhea of the infant."  It was
filed in 1987.  If you read the whole patent they mention use of bovine
lactoferrin (and this can be another issue because bovine lactoferrin is very
limited--trace amounts in their milk) for this invention but they also use
human lactoferrin (using pooled human mature milk and colostrum from
individual donors).  They state that their samples came from the Lactation
Lab (I assume the Lactation Lab at Baylor).   So some wonderful women pumped
their milk in the interest of science and patents.  Of course they aren't
going to get a cut in any profits.  And I know the next question will be,
what do you mean profits? Sitting next to Baylor College of Medicine and
collaborating with the college is Agennix--owner of lactoferrin patents, too.
 Agennix is one of many companies around the world producing human
lactoferrin commercially.  Lactoferrin has been added to infant formulas in
Japan since 1993 (found that in another patent) So Martha you have some very
thought-provoking questions and I don't have the answers.  Valerie W.
McClain, IBCLC

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