Patented Innovation and Firm Value in the U.S. Food and Drink Industry: The Economic Importance of High-Quality Product Innovation

Abstract We use patent data to study product, process, and marketing innovation in the food and drink industry. From 1994 to 2005, only 61 of 194 U.S. public food and drink manufacturers patented some type of innovation. Furthermore, we find patent ownership is most common to large corporations, and most patented innovations relate to new designs and processes as opposed to new products. According to our empirical panel analysis, however, stock market investors find patent ownership of new product innovations the most valuable, although the intensity of patent ownership is not of utmost importance. Instead, we conclude patent quality is better able to explain variability in the stock market valuation of U.S. food and drink manufacturers. Specifically, a one-percent increase in the quality of patented innovations in food and drink products facilitates a 0.07 % increase in firm value, corresponding to almost $6 million for the mean innovating firm in the U.S. public food and drink industry.