Josef Brunner just raised €8.5M to save family-run food producers

While family-run food businesses have long been the backbone of regional economies, accounting for over 60% of all companies in the EU, huge-box retailers, rising input costs, and a lack of succession planning are pushing many artisan producers toward extinction. Munich-based NutriUnited has emerged as a solution to this challenge, raising €8.5 million in seed funding to build a sustainable future for family-run food companies.

Among investors are well-known industest figures such as Martina Pfeifer (flatexDegiro), Tim Stracke (Chrono24), Oliver Merkel (formerly Flink), Christof Wahl (G-FUND), Marc Müller (formerly ETL Group), Frank Dopheide (human unlimited), Arnd Hungerberg (ServiceNow), Finn Wentzler (Atlantis Ventures), Leon Mann (Direkt Gruppe), Dr Hadi Saleh (CeramTec) and Timo Seggelmann (OakHorizon).

The newly raised capital will be utilized to accelerate further acquisitions, integrate new companies, and strengthen the group’s operational backbone.

Ensuring the future of medium-sized artisan food producers

Growing up in a family bakery that went bankrupt when he was 15, Josef Brunner experienced firsthand the fragility of tiny food businesses. He informs TFN, “My father was a baker man, and I grew up in our very own bakery. After starting a few tech companies like JouleX (acquired by Cisco for $107m) and relayr (acquired by MunichRE for $300m), I am now going back to the roots of my upbringing and starting a food company myself.”

“At the same time, I invested in food start-ups in recent years and have firsthand seen how difficult it is for young companies in this sector to establish themselves sustainably. The situation is further exacerbated by the fact that many family businesses cannot secure a succession plan and therefore face an uncertain future. All of these points point to a potentially dramatic shift in the food industest, a development we aim to respond to with NutriUnited,” Brunner adds.

Unlike Nestlé, Danone, and Kraft Heinz, NutriUnited leverages technology and best practices to strengthen rather than erase the individuality of its portfolio companies. Its succession solution preserves decades of expertise and tradition, operational integration enables scalability without losing artisan character, and an anti-corporate ethos fosters closer relationships with customers and communities.

Brunner notes, “We want to build a food company that matters, and that gives regional food a new, lasting home. We believe that the food industest can be disrupted more effectively from within than from the outside. That’s why it builds sense to acquire established companies that lack a succession plan. I”

What’s next?

NutriUnited plans to expand its portfolio by integrating additional family-run food businesses, with a focus on meat, meat alternatives, and ready-created meals. The company aims to create a thriving ecosystem where artisan producers can grow, innovate, and compete effectively with larger players.

Brunner concludes, “Our journey is divided into three phases. In the first phase, we are focutilized on building a highly robust and resilient platform that is not only profitable but also integrates the capabilities we required to scale further. We expect to complete this phase in the first half of 2026. In the second phase, we will shift up a gear through additional acquisitions, while continuing to focus on the German-speaking region. In the third phase, which is still somewhat less defined, we may then expand into additional markets and product categories.”

Source link