Premier banks on health as it adds Quorn to line-up after £172m Marlow acquisition

by Jennifer Whitehead, Brand Republic 07-Jun-05, 08:50

LONDON - Premier Foods, the name behind brands including Branston Pickle and Smash, has bought the maker of Quorn in a £172m cash deal.

Premier plans to boost marketing spend for Quorn following the acquisition of Marlow Foods, which was previously owned by Montagu Private Equity. With sales of £95m a year, Quorn will become Premier's biggest brand.

Creative agency Farm was appointed to the £8m Quorn account in January this year, taking over from JWT, which held the work since 2003, and developed a campaign to promote the health benefits of the product and extend its appeal to an audience beyond vegetarians.

The brand has over a 60% share of the £155m meat alternative category in the UK, which accounts for 75% of its global sales. The brand is also sold in Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium and the Netherlands. As well as selling a range of products such as Quorn mince, cold meat substitutes and ready meals, McDonald's has introduced a Quorn burger in its restaurants.

Robert Schofield, chief executive of Premier Foods, said: "Quorn's strong brand recognition and leading category positions immediately provide Premier with a very strong branded position in an exciting growth market.

"Quorn is ideally placed to benefit from the increasing demand for healthy eating and the combination with Premier should accelerate its growth."

The brand was launched in the US in 2002, where it is now the number-two meat alternative brand. But with the acquisition of Marlow Foods, Premier inherits a US lawsuit by the Center for Science in the Public Interest. The body, which lobbies on food safety issues, says that Quorn can cause allergic reactions and that it should be taken off the market.

Quorn has also run in to trouble in the UK, where it has been on sale since 1994, after complaints about its advertising. After a 2002 ruling by the Advertising Standards Authority, Quorn can no longer claim to be derived from mushrooms, but must say fungi instead.

Marlow Foods will continue to be run by its existing management team, led by managing director Nick Hughes.

Quorn's media planning and buying is through Walker Media.

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