Meat snacks producer Jack Link’s has acquired Kooee! All Natural Snacks in Australia via the US company’s Asia-Pacific business unit.
Financial terms were not disclosed in separate notices posted on LinkedIn by Jack Link’s and Kooee!
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Shannon O’Connell, managing director of Jack Link’s Asia Pacific, said: “Kooee! has built a brand that perfectly aligns with the way consumers are choosing to snack today – natural, high in protein, and made with integrity.
“Their commitment to quality and clean ingredients is unmatched, and we see this as a powerful addition to our growing portfolio in APAC.”
O’Connell added in her own personal post on the social media site that the Kooee! acquisition “enhances our position in the better-for-you category and opens new global channels and consumer segments”.
Kooee! was co-launched in 2015 by Shaun Malligan and produces “natural” beef and chicken jerky snacks. It is based in Launceston, Tasmania.
Jack Link’s listed Australian retailers Woolworths and Coles as stockists of the products, while Dan Murphy’s, On The Run and Harris Farm were identified by Kooee!
Malligan shared on LinkedIn that with his co-founders Arianna and Jamie Stearns, Kooee! first established a production facility in Launceston and began selling at local markets.
He added that the brand had received support from the Chobani Australia Incubator programme and another similar organisation in Australia, Farmers2Founders.
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By GlobalDataMalligan said: “The early years were tough. Few understood why Australia needed a healthy meat snack. But we had help: from the Chobani Australia Incubator, Farmers2Founders, fellow food founders, and our families.”
Kooee! also had a US business but that was shut down in 2017 and Malligan moved back to Sydney to focus on Australian operations, the co-founder said.
Jack Link’s in Asia Pacific added in its post that “from a humble stall at the Launceston farmers’ market to national distribution”, Kooee! has “redefined the category with organic, grass-fed beef snacks”.
Meanwhile, Wisconsin-based Jack Link’s expanded its own portfolio in 2020 with the acquisition of Golden Island Jerky from US peer Tyson Foods.
As well as its namesake jerky line, the portfolio also includes Local Legends, Lorissa’s Kitchen, Matador and Peperami, a brand acquired from Unilever. Outside the US, its products are available in New Zealand, Japan and South Korea, according to the company’s LinkedIn file.
