Foods United acquires a majority stake in LikeMeat

Delaware/Düsseldorf, February 17th 2020. Foods United Inc., based in Delaware (USA), has acquired a majority stake in LikeMeat GmbH (Düsseldorf) from heristo AG (Bad Rothenfelde).

LikeMeat was founded in 2013 and specialises in the production of vegan meat alternatives. The company is represented in the food retail sector with fresh products such as plant-based bratwurst, schnitzel and gyros strips and also offers a product range for the food service. In total, around 100 people work for LikeMeat at the production facility in Oss, Netherlands, and at the company headquarters in Düsseldorf. The company has also been exporting its products to the rest of Europe and to the USA since 2017. LikeMeat generates a turnover in the double-digit millions.

Products such as plant-based sausages and nuggets are now becoming increasingly attractive to the flexitarian mass market thanks to new production technologies and significantly improved taste. Foods United Inc. develops this product category of plant-based substitute products for poultry and meat through targeted investments in emerging markets and helps the latest generation of plant-based foods to strengthen their retail presence and be attractively priced in a global growth market.

Björn Witte, Board Member of Foods United: ‘This strategic investment of a 51 per cent stake in LikeMeat is a key first step in establishing a corporate group in the highly dynamic field of plant-based foods. We look forward to actively supporting the LikeMeat team in product development and marketing in the future.’

‘This transaction is a strong signal for the market and will transform LikeMeat from a successful start-up into an international company and truly global brand,’ says LikeMeat founder and managing director Timo Recker.

With its investments, Foods United is targeting the entire value chain – from the procurement of raw materials to production and marketing. This enables the accelerated development of strong brands, high quality standards and a wide range of products for a mass market that extends far beyond vegan and vegetarian niches.

The strategic distribution partner is Green Meadows GmbH, a joint venture of Foods United and the PHW Group, which is a founding member and shareholder of Foods United. The newly established company Green Meadows will be the production and distribution arm of Foods United in the European market.

In addition to Kees Kruythoff, the top-class management board at Foods United Inc. includes Chris Kerr (New Crop Capital), Steven Rapp and the Co-Founder Roger Lienhard, Björn Witte, Marcus Keitzer (director of alternative protein sources at the PHW Group) and Dr. Thomas Kindler (Secretary).

The principal shareholder of Foods United, which was founded in 2019, is Blue Horizon Corporation AG, based in Switzerland.

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