The Aussie Plant Based Co., owner of plant protein brands Veef and Love Buds, has been liquidated. The company was created last year when Fënn Foods and Love Buds, the retail business of All G Foods, merged.
Fort Restructuring partners, Kenneth Whittingham and Mark Robinson, have been appointed liquidators. Reported in other media outlets, Whittingham said the business closed due to cashflow problems, but Fort was in discussions with three other interested parties that were keen to “move quickly” to restart the business.
The Aussie Plant Based Co. was launched last year to create a larger player in the plant-based meat market.
Fënn Foods was founded by Alejandro Cancino and Paola Moro in 2015 and based on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. In 2021, it was the first to launch a certified Carbon Neutral Plant-Based Mince under its vEEF brand and named on the 2021 Australian Financial Review’s Fast 100.
All G Foods launched in 2021 after a $15.5 million seed funding raise, announcing its precision fermentation project to create cow-free dairy and retail product, Love Buds.
In forming the new business, All G Foods demerged its retail arm, Love Buds, to focus on its precision fermentation business.
“There are significant synergies between the two companies we can leverage to accelerate growth for both brands. VEEF has superior manufacturing processing while we have stronger R&D and vEEF is in the retail market while Love Buds is strong in foodservice,” Pacas said at the time.
The Aussie Plant-Based Co. was based at Fënn Food’s manufacturing facility on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland. Both labels were maintained, and together they had 6000 distribution points across Australia.
The company’s closure is another blow to the alternative protein industry in Australia. In May, Australia’s first commercial plant protein manufacturer, ProForm Foods, went into voluntary administration and was wound up in September. Sunfed, one of the early stars of the ANZ industry, also closed in May.
And Australia’s first plant-protein isolate manufacturer, Australian Plant Proteins (APP), entered voluntary administration, in July.
