go ask BigA about protein,he's seems to know his shit .... I always thought if you get good protein,you won't need as much which may be why alot of guys are taking in 4-500 grams day. Where did you hear about it being patented? .. Yeah never mind,i got that from BigA. I just forgot i wrote it. I believe in the saying, "you get what you pay for" ... Yeah sometimes you get screwed and don't even get what you pay for and sometimes you make out and get MORE than you pay for but most of the time You are going to get what you pay for. As long as they are legit companies and one guy is paying $10lb and another is paying $30lb ,it makes you wonder,doesn't it? .. I'd rather spend the extra money on the good stuff then to put the not so good stuff in my body and have alot of it wasted.