Danone buys meal-replacement firm Huel

Danone has snapped up UK meal-replacement concern Huel.

Hertfordshire-based Huel, acceptable up successful 2014, centres connected ready-to-drink shakes but besides markets products including powders and snack bars.

“What they person achieved successful the fast-growing implicit nutrition abstraction afloat resonates with Danone’s ngo of delivering wellness done food,” Danone CEO Antoine de Saint-Affrique said.

Financial presumption were not disclosed. The Financial Times enactment the acquisition terms astatine astir €1bn ($1.15bn). Just Food has approached Danone for comment.

Set up successful 2014 by entrepreneur Julian Hearn and erstwhile NHS dietician James Collier, Huel – a portmanteau of quality substance – sells its plant-based products successful the UK, continental Europe and the US.

The institution started retired arsenic a direct-to-consumer concern but present besides markets its products done bricks-and-mortar retail outlets.

Past investors person included VC steadfast Highland Europe and concern slope Morgan Stanley.

Huel CEO James McMaster, who joined the concern successful 2017, said the merchantability to Danone “marks the adjacent step” for the company.

He added: “We’ve spent 10 years gathering a marque with a affirmative interaction connected people's health. We’ve grown into an omnichannel concern with a beardown direct-to-consumer foundation, an expanding planetary footprint and a retail concern that’s scaling quickly.

“With Danone, we volition present person the infrastructure, organisation and R&D capableness to spell further, into caller markets and to much people, arsenic request for convenient, implicit nutrition continues to grow.”

The astir caller acceptable of Huel accounts disposable astatine Companies House, the UK concern register, amusement the firm’s gross stood astatine £214m for the 12 months to 31 July 2024, up 16% connected a twelvemonth earlier.

Pre-tax profits astir trebled to £13.8m. Its nett for the twelvemonth was £13.1m, versus £2.2m successful the erstwhile 12 months.

"Danone buys meal-replacement steadfast Huel" was primitively created and published by Just Food, a GlobalData owned brand.

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