Unilever has received a binding offer from JBS-owned Vivera to acquire its alt-meat unit The Vegetarian Butcher.
Reports in November suggested Unilever had put The Vegetarian Butcher, which like Vivera is from The Netherlands, up for sale.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Unilever bought the brand from founder Jaap Korteweg in 2018. The Marmite owner has disposed of a number of assets of late and has said it wants to focus instead on its so-called “power brands”. The UK-based FMCG giant is also planning to demerge its ice-cream arm, which includes brands such as Ben & Jerry’s and Magnum.
Announcing the planned sale of The Vegetarian Butcher today (20 March), Unilever said: “As we stated at our 2024 investor event, Unilever is looking to sharpen its portfolio for long-term growth and scalability, focusing on fewer, bigger brands.
“The chilled and frozen products of The Vegetarian Butcher require a distinct supply chain and sourcing model making them less scalable within the broader Unilever foods portfolio. Additionally, the unique set of technological and R&D capabilities that drive the remarkable innovations of The Vegetarian Butcher, differs significantly from the requirements of the wider Unilever portfolio.
“This divergence makes a sale of the brand the best option for both Unilever and The Vegetarian Butcher.”
Company president Heiko Schipper added: “Since the acquisition, The Vegetarian Butcher has delivered significant growth and launched many extraordinary products. The creative, impactful communication campaigns have fostered genuine love for the brand among consumers.”
Vivera, which dates back to 1990, was acquired by JBS, the world’s largest meat company, in 2021. It has around 500 employees and its products are available in more than 32.000 supermarkets in 25 European countries.
Willem van Weede, CEO of Holten-based Vivera, said: “The impressive and relentless dedication of the people of The Vegetarian Butcher have brought the vision of Jaap Korteweg to life on unprecedented scale and ‘sacrificing nothing’.
“Vivera is proud to unite with such like-minded believers in and experts of plant-based products, with the same big ambition towards a better and much more plant-based food chain.”
Rutger Rozendaal, CEO at The Vegetarian Butcher, added: “We are very excited for The Vegetarian Butcher to be joining forces with Vivera, as it will bring the opportunity to combine our strengths and deliver even greater value to our partners and our consumers.”
The Vegetarian Butcher, founded in 2010, has a presence in more than 55 markets worldwide, both in retail and in foodservice.
In January, Unilever offloaded its pasta sauce retail range in Germany to Italian food producer Casalasco Group.
The previous month it revealed received a “binding offer” from Dutch meat, snacks and soups producer Zwanenberg Food Group to acquire the Unox and Zwan food brands.
The company rang the changes in February, announcing Hein Schumacher was to step down as CEO, just 18 months after he joined the consumer goods giant from FrieslandCampina.
CFO Fernando Fernandez was named as his replacement.
Earlier this month, Fernandez said he has set course to fashion a “machine of demand creation”, with a focus on “geographical anchors” in the US and India.
He also repeated an observation from Schumacher that Unilever had around €1bn ($1.1bn) tied up in “non-core” food brands and, while some disposals have been completed, the process has “not really been happening that quickly”.
