NextFoods, a functional food and beverage company founded in 2006, announced the merger of two of its subsidiaries, Cheribundi and GoodBelly. The combined entity will seek to capture the synergies between the former’s expertise in sports nutrition and the latter’s gut health capabilities.
 
As part of the merger, Marcel Bens, current CEO of Cheribundi, will become CEO of NextFoods.
 
“Cheribundi and GoodBelly are dedicated to providing natural products that offer scientifically-proven health benefits,” said Bens. “This merger comes at a time when consumers are looking to move beyond lab-based, synthetic products to something that offers the same benefits naturally, thus positioning NextFoods as a leader in this movement.”
 
“Consumers are continuously looking to manage their health through the foods and beverages they consume,” says Andreas Guldin, managing partner and CEO of ECP, the largest investor in the combined entity. “We are excited to bring together two talented, driven companies to execute on the vision of better-for-you and better-for-the-planet products that meet growing consumer demand.”
 
The functional food market is anticipated to reach $26.7 billion by 2027, with a CAGR of 6.7%, NextFoods reported, citing Allied Market Research. This includes e-commerce, which is anticipated to increase 56% by 2027, and where, as a company, Cheribundi has seen a 120% year-over-year growth. The company now has over 400 professional and collegiate sports teams as customers, which will be an area of focus for NextFoods, alongside supporting the two companies’ scaling to over 20,000 retail locations.
 
“Adding Cheribundi to the NextFoods family is a significant step in both brands’ futures to foster the continuous improvement of functional food and beverage and we look forward to fueling the next evolution of innovation,” said Juan Gluth, former CEO of NextFoods who is now stepping into the role of Chief Commercial Officer. “I look forward to working together with our lead investor and new leadership team to bring future success to our combined company.”
 
GoodBelly and Cheribundi have each recently brought new products to market. GoodBelly recently launched its KIDS! Probiotic Beverages and Immune Support Line, as well as on-the-go products such as GoodBelly To Go Fast Melts, a line of shelf-stable probiotic powders.
 
Cheribundi recently launched tart cherry products with an expanded concentrates line, including a pure tart cherry concentrate, an immunity blend, and a sleep blend.