Meatless Farm lays off all staff and faces bankruptcy

Plant-based food manufacturer Meatless Farm is facing bankruptcy after being unable to attract new investment.

All of the company’s 50 staff based at its headquarters in Leeds have been made redundant amid a slowdown in demand for vegan products during the cost-of-living crisis.

Meatless Farm has made no official announcement about its future, but its website is down and its brands are no longer available to buy in supermarkets or online.

See also: Heck Sausages drop meat-free options

A number of staff members have confirmed on LinkedIn that they have lost their jobs.

The company’s commercial director, Tim Offer, wrote: “Sadly my time at Meatless Farm has come to an end. After a fantastic 10 months leading a talented and highly engaged sales team, the business has unfortunately made all the teams redundant.

“I learnt a huge amount in a short space of time and have absolutely loved the people and the brand.”

Head of IT James Turner said he had travelled to France at the weekend to watch the Le Mans 24 hour race and was returning to the UK without a job. “It is heartbreaking to lose such a big part of your life,” he wrote.

Meatless Farm, which produces plant-based sausages, mince and burgers, warned its shareholders a fortnight ago that it was facing millions of pounds in losses and needed to find a buyer to avoid administration.

Danish entrepreneur Morten Toft-Bech founded the company in 2016 and it launched its first products in supermarkets in October 2018.

In 2021, it sold more than £11m of plant-based products, but its financial problems have arisen at a time of a wider slump in demand for meat alternatives.

Last month, Yorkshire-based sausage maker Heck said it had dropped almost all meat-free products from its lineup, noting a lack of demand for meat or dairy alternatives.