Nestlé acquires full ownership of Yfood 

UK – Nestlé has acquired the remaining 51% stake in ready-to-drink meal brand Yfood Labs from its founders, taking full ownership of the fast-growing nutrition company as it prepares for international expansion beyond Europe. 

The transaction, announced on June 3, marks the first acquisition under Nestlé Chief Executive Officer Philipp Navratil, who assumed leadership of the Swiss food and beverage giant in September last year.  

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. 

The acquisition follows Nestlé’s initial purchase of a 49% stake in Yfood in 2023 and comes just months after Danone agreed to acquire Yfood competitor Huel in a deal reportedly valued at €1 billion (US$1.16 billion). 

Founded in 2017 by Ben Kremer and Noël Bollmann, Munich-based Yfood has established itself as a leading player in the meal replacement category, offering meal-in-a-drink products across 30 countries.  

Despite Nestlé’s minority investment in 2023, Kremer and Bollmann remained majority shareholders and continued to lead the business. Previous investors in the company included New Zealand dairy cooperative Fonterra. 

Nestlé said Yfood generated approximately €150 million in sales in 2025, representing double-digit year-on-year growth. 

“Through strong brand building, expanded distribution and continuous product innovation, the company has achieved sustained growth,” Nestlé said in a statement. 

The company added: “Yfood is now preparing for its next phase of growth, including the brand’s expansion into new markets beyond Europe.” 

As part of the transition, leadership of Yfood will pass to company executive Jolanda Schwirtz, who currently serves in a strategic leadership role within the business. 

Commenting on the acquisition, Yfood co-founder and co-CEO Noël Bollmann said the partnership with Nestlé had demonstrated the brand’s ability to scale internationally. 

“The next step for Yfood is global. To achieve that, the brand needs a partner with worldwide distribution and infrastructure. The past three years of partnership with Nestlé have proven that Yfood scales profitably across borders,” Bollmann said. 

“We are handing over Yfood at the exact moment the brand is ready for the world – and to the partner who can take it there,” he added. 

Separately, Nestlé CEO Philipp Navratil said lower coffee and cocoa prices are expected to support improved profitability in 2026. 

“Net-net commodity prices or input costs are favorable in 2026 compared with 2025,” Navratil said at a consumer conference in Paris. “That’s why you should expect margins to be higher and improving through the year as those better costs in those two commodities are coming through.” 

Navratil also revealed that Nestlé plans to invest an additional 600 million Swiss francs (US$763 million) in advertising and promotional activities this year, directing savings from efficiency initiatives into key growth platforms to accelerate business expansion. 

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