Dive Brief:
- South Korea’s largest tofu maker, Pulmuone Foods Co., Ltd., recently agreed to purchase the assets of Vitasoy USA Inc. of Ayer, MA, which includes Nasoya, a major tofu brand in the U.S.
- The $50 million purchase was administered through subsidiary Coast Acquisition Co.Pulmuone's operations are located in Korea, the United States, Japan and China.
- "This expanded business scale within the USA market will also be the beachhead to drive development and growth of Pulmuone beyond the tofu category," H.Y. Lee, CEO of Pulmuone Foods, said in a statement.
Dive Insight:
Pulmuone’s purchase gives it manufacturing and logistics benefits, as well as a comprehensive sales and distribution infrastructure to reach the U.S. marketplace.
Expansions, acquisitions, agreements and new product launches are the key strategies being adopted by meat substitute companies to ensure growth in a competitive market, according to a report released last fall by Research and Markets. The tofu and tofu ingredients segment is the largest for meat substitutes; and in terms of source, soy-based sources were the largest in 2014.
The meat substitute market is valued at $3.8 billion, with a CAGR of 6.4% between 2015 and 2020, reaching an estimated $5.17 billion by 2020. The substitutes have gained market share due to a rise in health concerns, the adoption of vegan and vegetarian diets, animal welfare and environmental issues.
