Acquisition of Dutch brand highlights scramble to tap into meat substitutes market
Unilever is buying the meat-substitute company The Vegetarian Butcher as it looks to cash in on the growing number of consumers turning their backs on meat.
Founded by the former cattle farmer Jaap Korteweg, the Dutch brand’s quirky products – which include “nochicken” nuggets and “chickburgers”, apparently with the same “taste and structure” as patties made out of chicken – have earned it a cult following among vegetarians and vegans.
In the UK, its products are sold largely through healthfood shops, and also in Waitrose.
Unilever’s Nitin Paranjpe said it had been attracted to the brand’s “clear mission” and strong position in a booming market for meat alternatives.
The deal comes as manufacturers, supermarkets and restaurants scramble to tap into the burgeoning vegan market, which has expanded as more people drop meat from their diet for health or ethical reasons. The UK has an estimated 22 million “flexitarians” – those who enjoy meat but want to reduce their consumption. Last month a plant-based burger that “bleeds”, from the US brand Beyond Meat, made its debut in Tesco.
Unilever, which owns household brands from Magnum to Marmite, said the acquisition of The Vegetarian Butcher, for an undisclosed sum, fitted its strategy to move into healthier plant-based foods with a lower environmental impact. Unilever already sells 700 vegan and vegetarian products under existing brands such as Knorr, Hellmann’s and Ben & Jerry’s.
“The brand will fit in well within our portfolio of ‘brands with purpose’ which have a positive social impact [and] are better positioned to meet the needs of consumers,” said Paranjpe. Last year Unilever, which also owns PG Tips and Liptons, bought Bristol-based ethical tea brand Pukka Herbs.