Feb 23 (Reuters) – Swedish company Oatly, which counts Oprah Winfrey and rapper Jay-Z among its main shareholders, has presented to regulators plans to hold a public offering for the sale of shares and go public, reported the Tuesday the vegan food and beverage maker.
Plant-based food has caught the attention of investors in recent years. Fast food chains and upscale restaurants are developing new menus to appeal to health and environmentally conscious consumers.
Oatly, a company known for its oat milk products, has agreements with several coffee shop chains in the United States, including Starbucks, and also sells its products online and in retail stores.
Much of the demand for plant-based foods is led by millennials and Gen Z consumers, willing to spend on sustainable products that are also healthy.
Oatly raised a $ 200 million equity investment in July last year from a group led by Blackstone Group Inc that includes Oprah Winfrey, Natalie Portman and former Starbucks Corp chief Howard Schultz.
New investors also include Roc Nation (Jay-Z’s entertainment company), Orkila Capital and Rabo Corporate Investments (owned by Rabobank).
Oatly, founded by brothers Rickard and Björn Öste, had a valuation of about $ 2 billion in July, according to PitchBook.
The company, whose Oatly brand is available in more than 20 countries in Europe and Asia, could be valued at about $ 10 billion at its IPO, Bloomberg News reported earlier this month, citing people familiar with the matter. .
(Information from Anirban Sen and Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru; edited by Shounak Dasgupta, translated by Flora Gómez in the Gdansk newsroom)
