The Re-Connecting Nature™ forest microbe extract, commercialized by Uute Scientific, is showing immense international potential in consumer products. Based on top-tier Finnish research, this innovation harnesses the microbial community found in nature to strengthen the body’s immune defence. Comprehensive trademark protection, as well as patented ingredient and production process, increase the value of the Re-Connecting Nature™ brand and are key assets in licensing negotiations with consumer product giants from the Fortune 500 list.
Founded in 2019, the biotech startup Uute Scientific has a meaningful mission: to promote a life free of immune-mediated diseases. The company has developed the world’s first ingredient, the Re-Connecting Nature™ forest microbe extract, that integrates nature exposure into the ecosystem of skin microorganisms and bacteria. Scientific studies show that nature exposure helps prevent and alleviate immune-mediated diseases such as type 1 diabetes, atopic dermatitis, allergies, asthma, and inflammatory bowel diseases like celiac disease.
“When biodiversity microbes are reintroduced into people's daily lives through everyday products like cosmetics, textiles, children’s modeling clay, and various other consumer goods, urban dwellers will no longer suffer from allergies, or for example, MS or Alzheimer’s disease to the same extent,” envisions Uute Scientific’s CEO, Kari Sinivuori.
Nature exposure restores immune system balance
The majority of the world’s population lives in cities. At the same time, exposure to microbes has decreased, leaving our immune systems under-stimulated. Developed originally at the Universities of Helsinki and Tampere, the Re-Connecting Nature™ microbial extract restores balance to the immune system.
“This ingredient is extremely microbe-rich and corresponds to the microbial community found in Finnish forests and nature. Just one gram contains more than 600 different bacterial species,” Kari describes the unique biodiversity extract.
Uute Scientific's clinical trials have demonstrated that training the immune system can reduce the negative effects of microbe-poor urban living. The human immune system also responds quickly: just two weeks of exposure to nature improves the diversity of the microbiome and immune defence of people living in the city.
Significant results were recently received from a research on atopic dermatitis, published in November 2024, involving more than 140 volunteers with the condition. The research showed that using a basic cream containing the Re-Connecting Nature™ microbial extract strengthened the skin and reduced the need for medication. As current atopic dermatitis treatments often have undesirable side effects, these findings are groundbreaking for the over 200 million people worldwide affected by the condition. The positive results have sparked interest among dermatologists and pharmaceutical companies, opening major licensing opportunities for Uute Scientific – even beyond dermatology into broader immune-mediated disease treatment. Two of the world's four largest pharmaceutical companies have already expressed interest.
Re-Connecting Nature™ boosts product and brand value
Uute Scientific’s Re-Connecting Nature™ microbial extract is already used in a variety of health and cosmetic products in over ten countries. Their clients include well-known cosmetics companies such as NOBE, Luonkos, Moi Forest, Forrest Riot, and SEES; textile company Ruskovilla; and pet wellness brand Doggy Potion. All client companies operate internationally.
“With our science based Re-Connecting Nature™ brand, we also enhance the value and profitability of our clients’ own brands. This is a critical competitive advantage for us. It’s rare to have a raw material that increases both the product’s refinement value and brand value,” says Rita Nordin, who is responsible for marketing and branding at Uute Scientific.
According to Rita, Re-Connecting Nature™ microbial extract is already found in over 100 different consumer products on the market.
“We’re now excited to see how the positive results of the atopic dermatitis study will drive our sales and how many cosmetics companies will begin developing products specifically for atopic skin.”
The extract's scalability to various product categories is one of the key success factors for Uute Scientific’s international growth.
“In the future, our ingredient could be found in edible or drinkable food products, supplements, or medical items. We are awaiting approval and classification for our raw material from the Finnish Fimea and the U.S. FDA. After that, marketing and licensing to these more regulated sectors will be possible,” Rita explains.
Close brand collaboration – with heart and mind
Uute Scientific is committed to helping their clients' forest microbe products succeed in the market. Rita says she has a motherly feeling toward all the "brand children" whose product launches she’s supported as an advocate for Re-Connecting Nature™.
“In line with our business and brand strategy, we recommend our clients display the Re-Connecting Nature™ brand logo on their product packaging like a certificate. This approach requires us to educate our clients, participate in their marketing events, and build partnerships so that this two-brand model works. We want the end consumer to know that the products include a scientifically proven, health-promoting, nature-exposure ingredient,” Rita explains about the trust-based cooperation aimed at growing shared brand value.
Rita also appreciates similar partnership values in their collaboration with Kaulo & Partners, who provide legal services and brand protection for Re-Connecting Nature™.
“Kaulo & Partners has been the perfect partner for us. We quickly noticed that as a ‘boutique law firm,’ their experts bring both heart and intellect to everything they do. For us, it’s been crucial to have not only high-level professional support in trademark and contract matters but also the feeling that we’re not alone with our concerns. Kaulo & Partners’ experts are part of our team. Together, we’re building the value of the Re-Connecting Nature™ brand,” Rita says.
Trademark search – the cornerstone of brand protection
In the early stages of the collaboration, Kaulo & Partners conducted a comprehensive trademark search for the Re-Connecting Nature™ brand logo in different countries. The aim was to assess whether any clear barriers to registration or IPR infringement risks existed in new international markets, including potential future product categories.
“This preliminary trademark search was insightful, as it enabled us to identify IPR-related risks and pitfalls specific to certain product groups and markets, which we can now prepare for. The information and advice we received guide our business strategy,” Rita says.
Expert help has also been valuable in drafting and refining delivery and licensing contract templates, especially concerning the important IPR clauses.
“Contracts are often long, complex, and difficult. Kaulo & Partners provided us with a clear template suitable for client companies of all sizes, along with solid guidelines on correct trademark usage for our license partners. This is an essential part of proactive IPR risk management and is now included in our agreements,” Rita adds.
Some challenging situations have also arisen, requiring enforcement of the company’s IP rights.
“With Kaulo & Partners’ legal advice, we’ve successfully and cost-effectively navigated those challenges,” Rita reports.
IPR supports negotiations with “giants” and ensures licensing income
For a fast-growing company like Uute Scientific, using an outsourced legal department cooperation model has freed up internal resources to focus on business development.
“When a legal partner manages our brand rights and contracts, we can focus on growth: contacting investors and financial institutions, acquiring and educating new clients, communications, and research projects,” Rita notes.
Currently, there’s a lot of positive momentum.
Uute Scientific is currently considering the right time to list on the stock exchange. Two funding rounds are already behind, and the company is currently looking for a new lead investor. Negotiations with international financiers and major global consumer product companies and distributors are underway to scale the business to its full potential.
In addition to the atopic dermatitis study, a major step toward global breakthrough was a clinical trial project with two well-known Global 500 consumer brands. These two globally distributed products were tested and modified using the forest microbe extract – with excellent results.
Now, Uute Scientific awaits to see which Fortune 500 consumer chemical company will be the first to integrate forest microbes into their products.
“Consumer products have huge potential. There are about five billion people living in cities who need daily nature exposure to stay healthy. If we get just one of these giants on board—one that already has two to three billion daily users across different product categories—the licensing income in total, as a ‘small reward’ per product for our long development work, could be so significant that there may never have been a more impactful export product from Finland,” Kari Sinivuori ponders and envisions.
For the Re-Connecting Nature™ forest microbe extract and brand, not even the sky is the limit. Uute Scientific has even explored ideas with the European Space Agency (ESA) about whether inactivated nature exposure could help resolve immune system dysfunctions observed in spacecraft and astronauts.
“Our Re-Connecting Nature™ product is so unique that it has no competitors. You could say nature itself is our only competition. We have a brilliant team, successful and award-winning clients, and a solid IPR foundation. Now we’re pushing forward with full force.”
