Lactalis acquires Protein Works to move into active nutrition

Lactalis has acquired Protein Works, the Liverpool active-nutrition brand, folding a digitally native DTC operator into the world's largest dairy group. Terms were not disclosed. Around 150 staff joined Lactalis on 1 June, and the buyer says it will keep the brand running as a distinct identity rather than absorbing it.

Founded in 2012, Protein Works sells protein shakes, meal replacements, supplements and snacks, manufactured at its own Liverpool site and sold almost entirely direct to consumers online. The brand generates roughly €65m in annual revenue, according to Lactalis, with a UK core supported by trade across Germany, Switzerland, Austria, France, Ireland, Belgium and Italy.

On paper this is a dairy company buying a protein company — a natural fit, given whey is a dairy by-product Lactalis produces at scale. But the strategic prize is the channel.

Lactalis is a wholesale and retail-brand machine, strongest in supermarket aisles under names like Président and Galbani. What it has lacked is a first-party relationship with the end consumer.

Protein Works supplies exactly that: a vertically integrated DTC model with its own manufacturing, a loyal subscriber base, and the digital marketing and data capabilities that legacy food groups struggle to build in-house. For Lactalis, owning the supply input and now the consumer-facing brand closes the loop from raw protein to repeat online order.

Lactalis says it will accelerate Protein Works in the UK and internationally while preserving the brand. The undisclosed price and any integration of Lactalis' protein supply into the brand's sourcing are the details worth watching as the deal beds in.