Meadow, one of the UK’s leading value-added ingredients businesses, has announced the acquisition of Naked Foods Limited. The move is a further step towards Meadow strengthening its position as a trusted partner of bespoke critical food ingredients to some of the UK’s most famous brands, growing the business through organic expansion and acquisition.

Naked Foods is a respected and proven manufacturer within the food & beverage industry, producing a wide range of fruit and confectionery sauces for UK and Irish food companies from its BRC A* grade factory in Kent. The company, established in 2003, has grown organically to now providing over 300 recipes and several thousand tonnes of sauces each year. The products include fruit preps for yogurts, dairy drinks, ice cream and plant-based products, as well as sweet and confectionery fillings for bakery and dessert products.

The acquisition allows Meadow to expand its portfolio into new product areas while enabling customers to benefit from the many synergies between the businesses, including product knowledge and manufacturing expertise.   Meadow is also able to enhance its customer offering, while leveraging the company’s existing manufacturing, sales and NPD capabilities.   

Raj Tugnait, Chief Executive of Meadow, comments: “For some time our customers have been urging us to enter the sweet sauce category. It is an adjacent category and a natural extension to what we already do.  There is a gap in the market for an agile player who can develop, scale-up and manufacture fruit preparations and Naked Foods has an enviable reputation for its quality and nimbleness. The team and culture felt right to be part of the Meadow family. Adding sweet sauces allows us to further diversify our portfolio and strengthen our position as a leading supplier of quality food ingredients.  Meadow has a three-pronged growth plan –organic; growing with our existing customers and in existing categories, inorganic; building new capabilities in house; and finally acquiring quality businesses that will complement Meadow and make it a better proposition for its customers.  Naked Foods fits perfectly with that plan.” Meadow will support the Naked Foods team to accelerate their own ambitious growth plan.

This acquisition is the latest from Meadow, following the purchase of Nimbus Foods, also in the confectionery space, and is a further step towards Meadow delivering on its business growth strategy

Meadow is a leading ingredients business, partnering with the world’s biggest food manufacturers to solve their most complex challenges. Experts in the dairy, confectionery and plant-based industries, Meadow is the essential ingredient in many favourite food brands. The company now employs over 500 people across five BRC AA and A* accredited sites in Chester, Peterborough, Holme-on-Spalding Moor, Dolgellau and Headcorn.