Vbites’ founder Heather Mills has bought the company’s assets back out of administration in a deal worth £1 million.

Established in 1993, Vbites is a producer of plant-based alternatives to meat, dairy and seafood products. The company operated from its two UK manufacturing sites in Peterlee, County Durham and Corby, Northamptonshire.

After 30 years of trading, the company was revealed to have entered administration in December last year, as reported by The Plant Base. Mills cited “corporate greed” and “galvanised and well-funded marketing of misinformation by the meat and dairy industries” as some of the drivers leading to the business’ collapse.

James Clark and Howard Smith, of restructuring and insolvency specialist Interpath Advisory, were appointed on 11 December to explore Vbites’ options and seek a buyer.

A document published by Interpath Advisory has now disclosed that a deal was struck on 17 January for Mills’ company, Vegan Solo Consulting, to purchase Vbites’ assets for £1 million. The purchase covers the company’s intellectual property, stock, facilities and machinery.

In a statement published on her LinkedIn page yesterday, Mills said that she was “devastated” when Vbites was “forced unnecessarily” into administration with three days notice.

She wrote: “It was agreed between both shareholders that we would always give each other three months notice, knowing the figures six months ahead set for the company, so I was doubly shocked that it went straight into administration, even though I gave viable solutions”.

Mills continued: “I was also not happy being told that many of my loyal and hard-working staff were losing their jobs. I was cut out of everything.”

However, the entrepreneur said that she “strongly believed” Vbites’ next-generation technology and work had a “huge role to play” in assisting the food market’s transition to become healthier and more sustainable.

For this reason, Mills said she has chosen to resurrect the company “at great personal expense,” taking control of the operations personally and moving back to the northeast.

“We have already developed a version 2.0 of plant-based food, soon to launch, that we believe will be a market mover and will help all of those people attempting to make a flexitarian or plant-based/vegan transition achieve their goals more easily, both with variety and deliciousness,” she concluded.

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