Meatless Farm is set to be saved from financial collapse by meat-free startup VFC.

The plant-based brand made the majority of its workforce redundant earlier this month, and entered administration following a failed attempt to find new investment.

However, VFC has now told Meatless customers and suppliers that the deal was a “golden opportunity” to merge the businesses, something which look to “spark innovation in the plant-based food category”.

The rescue will now allow the brand to return to supermarket shelves, but the 50 staff in Leeds who last their jobs prior to the collapse are not expected to get their positions back.

Subscribe to Grocery Gazette for free

Sign up here to get the latest grocery and food news each morning

VFC was launched in 2020 by Matthew Glover and Adam Lyons as Vegan Fried Chick*n, a meat-free rival to KFC – is backed by Veg Capital and recently raised £6m seed investment for expansion in the UK and overseas.

The York-headquartered brand VFC launched in 2021 at Tesco, and has since won distribution with a number of other retailers such as Sainsbury’s, Asda, Morrisons, Ocado and Waitrose.

According to a letter, seen by The Grocer, VFC CEO Dave Sparrow said: “The Meatless Farm brand boasts high consumer recognition, a dynamic range of products, robust R&D capabilities, and a mission that dovetails perfectly with that of VFC.”

“We firmly believe that this development will yield considerable benefits for our valued customers, suppliers, and consumers.

“Please rest assured that our collective leadership and all team members are wholly committed to maintaining business as usual.”