Arla Food Elements has acquired the company’s whey nutrition division by purchasing the shares of Volac Whey Nutrition Holdings Limited and its subsidiaries Volac Whey Nutrition Limited and Volac Renewable Energy Limited.
Volac Group specializes in converting whey into raw materials for sports nutrition, with by-products sold as food and animal nutrition. The company’s whey nutrition portfolio includes the Volactive series. Meanwhile, Arla Foods Materials’ solutions consist of the Lacprodan series designed for sports nutrition applications such as RTDs, powder shakes, and protein bars.
These stock purchases follow Arla Food Elements’ recent acquisition of MV Elements, which manufactured products sold by and to Volac.
At the time, Henrik Andersen, CEO of Arla Food Ingredients, was clear about the company’s intentions for whey expansion.
“Arla Foods Ingredients is actively seeking more whey to continue our journey of discovering and delivering powerful nutrition for a stronger tomorrow.”he said.
Commenting on this latest acquisition, Louis Kubel, Group Vice President and Managing Director of Arla Foods English, said: “This brings together two complementary products in the increasingly international whey product space. Volac is a pioneer in the use of whey protein in performance nutrition and has a wealth of expertise and We have an incredibly talented team that shares our commitment.”
James Neville, co-owner of Volac, commented: “Whey processing started over 30 years ago at our Ferinfach facility and we couldn’t be more proud of everything everyone involved in this business has achieved since then.
“When thinking about the future of Volac Whey Nutrition and the opportunities that lie ahead for the business, it was very important to us that we choose a partner with the right values and expertise. We have the ambition and knowledge to raise the bar.”
Arla’s two acquisitions of Volac assets are sandwiched between another acquisition from Netherlands-based Denkavit Group, which acquired Volac’s milk substitutes business.
Volac’s success in the whey market
In 2021, Volac’s sales increased, but its pre-tax profit decreased due to acquisitions and expansion, as well as the associated increase in management costs.
The following year (2022), pre-tax profits increased by £8.3m to £34.8m. With Whey in the driver’s seat, sales increased by 37% to £382.8m.
Neville described it as follows “An unusually successful year”As for the whey department.
“We were able to increase our whey protein sales volumes and make the most of the significant investment we recently made at the Ferrinfach site.” he added.
Overall, the global sports nutrition industry has grown at a CAGR of 9% since 2010. By 2028, he is expected to reach a value of $42.2 billion, up from $28.1 billion in 2023.
