Huel unveiled as latest addition to Morgan Stanley Investment Management’s 1GT climate private equity strategy

Huel, the sustainable nutrition brand, has announced an investment by Morgan Stanley Investment Management’s (MSIM) 1GT climate private equity strategy which will see the two parties work in close collaboration.

Huel, which is the second investment made by 1GT, has been hailed as a best-in-class addition to its portfolio given the strength of Huel’s sustainability commitments and position as a nutritionally complete food. 1GT aims to provide insight and expertise from across the Morgan Stanley business to enhance Huel’s sustainability agenda and capture growth opportunities in the United States and globally.

The 1GT strategy is aligned with Huel’s sustainability commitments as it makes investments in companies that aim to collectively avoid or remove 1 gigaton of carbon dioxide-equivalent emissions from the Earth’s atmosphere from the date of the platform’s investment through 2050, the date by which the United Nations has mandated 'Net Zero' must be achieved. Earlier this year, 1GT raised US$500 million in its first close as innovative products and solutions focused on addressing climate change continue to appeal to investors.

The new partnership with Huel acknowledges the brand’s promising record of embracing sustainability throughout the business while achieving excellent growth rates. Since launching in 2015, Huel’s mission has been to make nutritionally complete, convenient and affordable food, with minimal impact on animals and the environment.

Huel reported over £144 million (US$175 million) of revenue in FY22, an increase of 41% on 2021. The business also grew active customers by 22% to over 900,000 and has now achieved the milestone of 300 million meals sold worldwide since Huel was founded, all while maintaining its commitment to minimize the environmental and ethical impact of its products. Huel’s FY23 results are set to be announced in November.

Recognizing that the food industry contributes more than a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions, Huel made a deliberate decision to develop products that offer solutions. Huel is committed to all meals being in line with targets to limit global warming to 1.5°C, and its meals contribute 50% less carbon footprint than the average US meal. To support this, all Huel products are plant based and ethically sourced. The state-of-the-art carbon net zero manufacturing site in Milton Keynes, UK, set to open next year, and achievement of B Corp certification with a score of 92.1, significantly over the 80 point pass requirement, has further bolstered Huel’s sustainability credentials.

“We are delighted to announce this partnership with 1GT, which will further support our growth ambitions, as we continue our global expansion and deliver on our mission," said James McMaster, CEO of Huel. "This is a huge vote of confidence in the business and 1GT’s commitment to us demonstrates the significant potential of our brand and the strength of our sustainability credentials. We remain focused on providing our Hueligans with nutritionally complete food and look forward to working closely with the extremely innovative and expert team at 1GT in the coming years.”

“We are delighted to announce a new partnership with Huel," added Vikram Raju, MSIM’s Head of Climate Private Equity Investing and 1GT. "In recent years, Huel has reinforced its position as a leading brand within the sustainable nutrition sector addressing time-critical carbon issues, exactly the type of company we look to invest in.

Huel has already demonstrated its unique growth potential through impressive revenue growth on resilient margins and strong cash generation. It has also made several unparalleled sustainability commitments which have been reinforced by an excellent B Corp score and a distinctive commitment to changing the carbon footprint of our daily diets.”