South Africa: PSG Group acquires stake in ButtaNutt
ButtaNutt has secured a 54% equity investment from PSG Group.
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ButtaNutt, a South African company specialising in plant-based dairy alternatives, has secured a 54% equity investment from PSG Group. The remaining shareholding is retained by the founding management team, led by founder and CEO, Antoine van Heerden.
ButtaNutt, which is based in Paarl, Western Cape, has grown from a single-product start-up to a well-established name in the local food innovation landscape. With a focus on natural, minimally processed products, its range of nut butters and dairy alternatives has found favour with South African consumers.
PSG Group is a South African investment company known for backing entrepreneurial businesses with long-term growth potential. PSG Group delisted from the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in 2022.
The investment by PSG Group includes growth capital to support ButtaNutt’s expansion. ButtaNutt currently produces double the plant-based milk volumes compared to the prior year. This significant increase in capacity was made possible by the commissioning of a processing and packaging facility in 2024, following a strategic investment from PepsiCo in 2022.
“ButtaNutt is a proudly South African business, and they've built a brand that resonates with consumers. The business is led by entrepreneurial founders who are passionate about what they do. ButtaNutt is a fast-growing business in an industry that is growing globally and we are excited to be part of its next chapter,” said Dries Mellet, director at PSG Group.
The investment is further strengthened by the involvement of Tertius Carstens, former CEO of Pioneer Foods Group, who now serves on the ButtaNutt board.
What began as a side hustle selling roasted macadamias from his university residence in 2012, Van Heerden’s dream has grown into a small business success story.
“Back then, I didn’t have a grand plan,” he recalls.“ I was a second-year engineering student at Stellenbosch, just trying to do something creative with my parents’ macadamia harvest. The nut butter idea came almost by accident. But from the start, there was something special about the product, and the feedback we got from customers was overwhelmingly positive.”
From grinding nuts in his digs and selling jars at local farmers markets, Van Heerden’s commitment to the craft and passion for entrepreneurship has taken the business through every phase of growth. The turning point came when ButtaNutt began to experiment with nut milks, which have since become its flagship products.
“Nut milks became our big bet,” Van Heerden explains. “After years of trials, some travel to the United States to study market trends, and finally, a lot of investment into infrastructure, we managed to create a local product that could compete with international alternatives, with a proudly South African flavour.”
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