JBS, the largest global protein company and the world’s second-largest food industry, has entered into an agreement to acquire control of Spanish company BioTech Foods. The deal signals the company’s entry into the cultivated protein market, which consists of producing food from animal cells and includes investment in building a new production plant in Spain to scale up production. Along with the acquisition, JBS is also announcing the setting up of Brazil’s first cultivated protein research & development (R&D) center. In all, JBS will channel US$ 100 million to the two projects.
Founded in 2017, BioTech Foods is one of the leaders in the development of biotechnology for producing cultivated protein, and has the support of the Spanish government and the European Union. The company operates a pilot plant in the city of San Sebastián and expects to reach commercial production in mid-2024 with the building of this new production plant. The investment in the new facilities is estimated at US$ 41 million.
BioTech Foods is founded by Iñigo Charola, a sales executive with broad experience in marketing and strategy, and Mercedes Vila Juárez, PhD in materials physics and one of the world’s leading experts in the use of materials for biomedicine.
Under the terms of the deal, JBS becomes the majority shareholder of BioTech Foods. The deal enables both companies to pool their strengths and accelerate the development of the cultivated protein market. The Brazilian company will now have access to the technology and to the protein production of BioTech Foods which, in turn, will have at its disposal the industrial processing capacity, marketing structure and sales channels of JBS for bringing the new product to market.
When commercial operations begin, the cultivated protein will reach consumers in the form of prepared foods, like hamburgers, steaks, sausage meats, and meatballs, among others, with same quality, safety, taste and texture as in traditional protein. The technology has the potential not only for the production of bovine protein, but also chicken, pork and fish.
“This acquisition strengthens our strategy of innovation, from how we develop new products to how we commercialize them, to address the growing global demand for food. Combining technological know-how with our production capacity, we will be in a position to accelerate the development of the cultivated protein market”, contends Gilberto Tomazoni, global CEO of JBS.