Danone is acquiring Huel

Danone has entered into an agreement to acquire Huel, the UK-founded complete nutrition brand, in what's been reported as a deal worth approximately €1 billion, though Danone hasn't confirmed the figure.

The acquisition gives Danone a direct entry into the fast-growing complete nutrition category through a brand with strong digital-first credentials.

Huel, founded in 2015 by Julian Hearn and James Collier, surpassed £200 million in revenue for the year ending July 2024 and tripled its profit over the prior year. The brand has built a customer base of more than four million people across over 100 countries, with approximately half its revenue from the UK, 30% from the US, and the remainder from continental Europe and other markets.

What Danone is buying

Huel sells nutritionally complete meals in several formats — powders, ready-to-drink shakes, bars, and hot meals — through a direct-to-consumer model supplemented by growing retail distribution. The DTC channel has been central to Huel's economics and its ability to build a subscription-driven, repeat-purchase customer base. That digital capability appears to be a core part of the strategic rationale. Danone's CEO Antoine de Saint-Affrique cited Huel's "best-in-class digital capabilities" alongside the brand's product range as the draw.

James McMaster, Huel's CEO, said: "We've spent ten years building a brand with a positive impact on people's health. With Danone, we will now have the infrastructure, distribution, and R&D capability to go further, into new markets and to more people."

Why it matters

The deal is a clear signal that major FMCG players see complete nutrition as a durable growth category, not a niche. The European meal replacement market is valued at roughly $2 billion and is projected to grow at 6–7% annually through the early 2030s, according to Mordor Intelligence and Research and Markets.

Several forces are accelerating that growth. The rise of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs — usage doubled in UK households during 2025, from 2.3% to 4.1%, according to Kantar — is increasing demand for nutrient-dense, portion-controlled food. At the same time, younger consumers are driving uptake of functional and convenient formats. Danone itself signalled its interest in the space earlier this year with Alpro Meal To Go, a plant-based ready-to-drink meal launched across European markets in January 2026.

The deal is expected to close following regulatory approvals. Huel's existing team will join Danone, with the brand sitting within the company's functional nutrition portfolio alongside its medical and specialised nutrition businesses.