Fairbanks company wins U.S. patent for backcountry endurance nutrition powder

A Fairbanks company has received a U.S. patent for a powdered meal-replacement formula designed for people who must consume large amounts of calories without carrying much weight or bulk, a constraint that matters for backcountry hunters, endurance racers and military special operators covering long distances on foot. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued Patent No. 12,696,914 B1 on Aug. 4 to Industria Imperium, LLC of Fairbanks, on an application filed April 25, 2024.

The listed inventors are Robert Coker, Larry Bartlett of Fairbanks, Brent Ruby and Melynda Coker. The patent describes its intended users as anyone under sustained physical and caloric stress who limits food-kit weight or volume: "a special operator, adventure enthusiast, ultra-endurance athlete, or the like."

The broad claim covers a powdered blend of carbohydrates, fatty acids and essential amino acids that dissolves in 5 ounces of water. Narrower embodiments and dependent claims fill in the specifics: a complete meal-equivalent dose of 670 to 830 calories, a figure the patent derives by assuming 2,500 calories a day for men and 2,000 for women, eaten as three meals; a carbohydrate blend of maltodextrin and fructose; a fatty-acid blend in which medium-chain triglycerides supply 20 to 25 percent by weight; and an amino-acid blend drawing partly on sacha inchi, a plant protein.

The cited research base includes work by Coker and colleagues on energy requirements of wilderness hunting in Alaska and caloric expenditure among Alaska Mountain Wilderness Ski Classic racers.