Unilever has agreed to sell its plant-based meat brand, The Vegetarian Butcher, to Dutch company Vivera, which is owned by global meat giant JBS. The deal is expected to be finalised by the third quarter of 2025, subject to regulatory approvals and consultation processes.
Unilever, which acquired The Vegetarian Butcher in 2018, is selling the business as part of its ongoing portfolio restructuring under its Growth Action Plan 2030 (GAP2030). The company aims to divest brands worth approximately £1 billion in annual sales to focus on its 30 core brands, including Hellmann’s, Dove, and Knorr. Investment bank Piper Sandler is handling the transaction.
The Vegetarian Butcher operates in 55 countries and supplies products to over 40,000 retail locations, including partnerships with fast-food chains like Burger King and Subway. Despite Unilever’s investment in marketing and reported double-digit growth, the brand remains unprofitable, generating around €50 million in annual sales. Unilever cited the brand’s distinct supply chain and technological requirements as factors that made it less scalable within its broader operations.
Vivera, founded in 1990 and one of Europe’s largest plant-based meat companies, was acquired by JBS in 2021. The company’s CEO, Willem van Weede, stated that the acquisition of The Vegetarian Butcher would strengthen its ability to drive the shift toward plant-based protein.
The sale is part of a broader restructuring at Unilever, which is also spinning off its ice cream division—including brands like Magnum and Ben & Jerry’s—and exploring divestments of several Dutch food brands. The company has revised its ESG commitments while reporting a 1.9% revenue increase to €60.8 billion in 2024.
The deal reflects a wider trend of consolidation in the plant-based food sector, which has seen multiple acquisitions in the past year amid declining investment and slowing sales.