The maker of a breakthrough food supplement, virgin coconut oil in capsule form, said he expects his company getting the patent for his invention by early next year, especially in view of the fast growing popularity of the health benefits of virgin coconut oil (VCO).

Ed Lalusis, inventor and owner of Growrich Food Manufacturing Inc. which came up with the Growrich Virgin Coconut Oil 500 mg capsule, said his lawyers from the Rivera Santos & Maranan Law Offices are constantly following up their pending patent application with the Department of Trade and Industry's Intellectual Property Office (IPO).

"We're following up the patent application and we expect to get it early next year," Lalusis, who also holds a patent for a pure coconut fuel he invented in 1970s, told The STAR.

Lalusis, who left the country last week for the United Kingdom to set up a distribution network there for his VCO in capsule form, said that VCO, especially the capsulized version he came out with, is very promising as an export product with the following it has been earning among Filipino overseas contract workers and their foreign co-workers in different countries all over the world.

He said that in capsule form, overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who take with them the VCO product do away with storage problems they encounter with VCO in liquid form especially those working in countries with cold climates where VCO freeze or harden.

Lalusis pointed out that as a seasonal OFW himself being health officer in an offshore American oil company owned oil field abroad, he had also dealt with the problems in bringing VCO in cold climate countries and drinking it there.

"Everybody loves VCO. And they will love it more when they take it in capsule form," Lalusis said.

Growrich was the first to come up with a VCO in capsule form that was approved by and secured registration with the Bureau of Food and Drugs (BFAD) for their process encapsulating virgin coconut oil and still retaining its health benefits from among the many attempts of other manufacturers to come out with virgin coconut oil in capsule or tablet form.

Growrich had earlier clarified reports coming out against its product which falsely claims that consumers have to take it in large quantities a day to get the health benefits one would if they drank virgin coconut oil in liquid form.

It was stressed that the Growrich virgin coconut oil in capsule form would not have been issued a BFAD approval and certificate of public registration if the end encapsulation process had shown to bedefective.