Nestlé buys Yfood, betting on complete nutrition and protein-led convenience

Nestlé has gone all in on yfood, turning a 49% minority stake into full ownership of a brand built around nutritionally complete drinks, powders and bars. The deal puts one of the world’s biggest food companies deeper into the space where meal replacement, protein and convenience overlap, and it signals how valuable the on-the-go eating occasion has become.

Nestlé said it has held the 49% stake in yfood since 2023, and the remaining shares held by founders Benjamin Kremer and Noel Bollmann are expected to transfer on 3 July 2026. The company did not disclose financial terms. Reuters reported that this was Nestlé’s first acquisition under chief executive Philipp Navratil, who took over in September 2025, making the purchase an early read on where he wants to push the portfolio.

The attraction is easy to see in yfood’s numbers. Nestlé said the brand generated about EUR 150 million in sales in 2025 and is already sold in 30 countries, with more than 50,000 points of sale across 18 European markets. Yfood’s own German-language release says the business runs through both direct-to-consumer and retail channels, a useful combination in a category that depends on repeat use, trial and visibility at the shelf. Nestlé also said yfood is preparing to expand beyond Europe, which gives the deal a growth story as well as a portfolio story.

What Nestlé is buying is not just a branded liquid meal. It is a claim on a consumer habit: breakfast skipped on a commute, lunch replaced during a packed day, or a protein-led option that feels more complete than a shake and more practical than a prepared meal. That is why the deal matters beyond one brand. It fits a broader move by large food groups toward functional nutrition, with a similar push visible in Danone’s acquisition of Huel just two months earlier. The logic is shifting from isolated macros to complete products that promise satiety, balance and speed in one package.

Yfood, founded in Munich in 2017 by Benjamin Kremer and Noel Bollmann, was built around the idea that healthy eating gets harder when time runs short and schedules get messy. Nestlé appears to be betting that idea scales well. In a crowded market, the prize may not be meal replacement alone, but ownership of the whole health-positioned, ready-to-drink eating occasion.