Ojah B.V.

Ojah B.V. is a Dutch manufacturer of plant-based meat and fish alternatives based in Ochten, Gelderland, founded in 2009. The company specialises in High Moisture Extrusion (HME) — a process technology that converts plant protein and water into fibrous, meat-like structures — and operates one of the largest dedicated HME production facilities in Europe. Ojah functions primarily as a B2B ingredient and private-label supplier, producing extruded protein bases and finished products for food brands, retailers, and foodservice operators in more than 20 countries.

The company emerged from the Dutch food process engineering ecosystem centred on Wageningen, and is rooted in applied technology development rather than consumer marketing — a positioning that distinguishes it from many plant-based brands that followed.

Company profile

Origins: from TOP b.v. to Ochten

Between 2007 and 2009, researchers at TOP b.v. — the Wageningen-based food technology spin-off from ATO-DLO — developed an extrusion-based process for converting plant proteins into fibrous structures resembling poultry meat. The technology combined soy protein concentrate, water, and high-moisture extrusion under controlled temperature, pressure, and shear to produce a texturised product with directional fibre orientation.

The commercialisation of this technology was organised through Holland Food Ventures (HFV), a holding vehicle co-owned by Bert Tournois, Herman Feil, Wouter de Heij, and Frank Giezen — the same group that later co-founded BOX N.V. (Blue Ocean Xlerator). Holland Food Ventures established Ojah B.V. and located the first production facility in Ochten, a small municipality in the Betuwe region of Gelderland.

“Verhip, het lijkt net kip”

A well-known anecdote within the company describes the moment that defined the venture: when Frank Giezen tasted the first test extrusion, he said:

“Verhip, het lijkt net kip!” (“Blimey, it looks just like chicken!”)

That reaction — combining surprise at the textural resemblance — became the founding narrative of the company, and underlines that Ojah’s origin was a process engineering discovery, not a marketing concept.

Founders and background

All three founders came from a food engineering and process technology background:

• Frank Giezen — co-founder of TOP b.v. and previously affiliated with ATO-DLO; served as CEO from founding until transitioning to Head of Innovation; deep expertise in food process engineering and extrusion technology
• Jeroen Willemsen — co-founder; food engineer
• Wouter Jansen — co-founder; food engineer

The founding team was representative of the Dutch food technology ecosystem around Wageningen — process-oriented, technically rigorous, and focused on industrial scalability rather than consumer branding. Ojah describes itself as having started “before being vegan became cool” — emphasising that it pre-dated the global plant-based food boom of the mid-2010s and originated as a technology-driven enterprise.

Current CEO is Eric Schut; Frank Giezen leads innovation.

Technology: High Moisture Extrusion

High Moisture Extrusion (HME) is the core proprietary technology of Ojah. It differs from conventional dry or low-moisture extrusion (used for TVP — textured vegetable protein) in the moisture content of the input feed and the structure of the resulting product.

In HME, plant protein concentrate and purified water are fed into a twin-screw extruder operating at elevated temperature and pressure. As the mass passes through the extruder barrel, the combination of heat, shear, and mechanical pressure denatures and aligns the protein chains into parallel fibrous structures. A long cooling die downstream locks in the fibrous architecture as the product exits the extruder, producing a continuous log of textured protein with directional fibre orientation that can be cut, torn, or shredded into chicken-like pieces, strips, or pulled formats.

Ojah’s HME process uses only two principal inputs: plant protein concentrate and water. The absence of additives, binders, or fillers is central to the clean-label positioning of the Plenti® product range.

Key controllable parameters include:
– Protein source and concentration
– Moisture content
– Extruder screw speed and configuration
– Temperature profile along the barrel
– Cooling die length and geometry
– Cutting method and piece size

These parameters together determine the bite, juiciness, fibrous texture, and mouthfeel of the final product — allowing customisation for chicken, beef, pork, or fish analogues from the same basic platform.

Products

Plenti® product range

The Plenti® brand is Ojah’s primary product platform, supplied to food manufacturers and retailers as a B2B ingredient or semi-finished product:

Plenti® Pure contains all essential amino acids, is high in dietary fibre, and is low in saturated fats and salt. Raw material is non-GMO, European-certified soy protein (Donau Soja / Europe Soy certified).

Heppi® Ribs

In November 2019, Ojah launched Heppi® Ribs, marketed as the world’s first vegan ribs product made from yellow peas. Using pea protein as the HME feedstock — rather than soy — the product delivers rib-like bite, mouthfeel, and juiciness. The Heppi® line demonstrates Ojah’s ability to extend its extrusion platform beyond soy to legume-based proteins, relevant for allergen management and ingredient diversification.

Allergen and certification status

• Free from animal-origin ingredients
• Free from gluten, tree nuts, and milk
• Halal certified
• BRC-9 Grade AA (highest tier of the British Retail Consortium food safety standard)
• Donau Soja / Europe Soy certificate — guaranteeing non-GMO, European-origin soy
• Products processed as IQF (Individually Quick Frozen)

Customers and markets

Ojah operates as a B2B supplier rather than a consumer brand. Its products are incorporated into finished goods by food manufacturers, retailers (private label), and foodservice operators. Key early customers and partnerships include:

• De Vegetarische Slager — one of the first customers from approximately 2010; a Dutch plant-based butcher brand that later became a global brand under Unilever (acquired 2018); Ojah-produced extrudate formed the basis of several of its products
• Albert Heijn — Dutch supermarket chain retailing Ojah-based products under own brand
• Food manufacturers, foodservice chains, and plant-based brands across Europe, North America, Japan, and Australia

The company sells to more than 20 countries and is positioned as an ingredient and co-manufacturing partner rather than a competing consumer brand.

Investment history and ownership

Holland Food Ventures (2009)

Ojah was established and initially funded by Holland Food Ventures (HFV), a private holding vehicle formed by the founders and co-investors from the TOP b.v. / ATO-DLO network (Bert Tournois, Herman Feil, Wouter de Heij, Frank Giezen). HFV provided early-stage capital to establish the Ochten facility and first production line.

Oost NL / PPM Oost (from 2010)

Oost NL (then operating as PPM Oost — Participatiemaatschappij Oost-Nederland), the regional development investment fund for the Dutch provinces of Gelderland and Overijssel, made an early strategic investment enabling Ojah to secure a €1 million bank loan for its first industrial extrusion line. Oost NL’s involvement was instrumental in the transition from pilot scale to commercial production.

Korys (2017)

In February 2017, Korys — a Belgian family investment office — acquired the Oost NL stake, providing capital for accelerated international expansion. By this time Ojah was growing at annual rates of up to 70% and was reported as the fastest-growing meat substitute producer in the Netherlands, operating with approximately 120 employees across 5 shifts.

Kerry Group (2018)

In March 2018, Kerry Group — the Irish food ingredients and technology multinational — agreed to acquire a 55% stake in Ojah from Korys Investments for a reported €15.6–20 million, with European Commission approval granted in April 2018. The transaction represented Kerry’s entry into the high-moisture extrusion plant-protein sector. Ojah maintained its operational independence, management team, and Ochten production base under the new ownership structure.

Production and scale

Ojah’s Ochten facility has grown from its initial capacity to become one of the largest dedicated HME plants in Europe. Key operational facts:

• Annual production capacity reported at 1,600 tonnes of substitute meat products (as of 2018); the company announced plans to double capacity in 2023
• Continuous 5-shift, 24/7 operation
• Large-format industrial extrusion lines configured for high-volume, consistent output
• IQF (Individually Quick Frozen) processing for product stability and logistics flexibility

Positioning and sector context

Ojah occupies a distinct position in the plant-based food landscape. Unlike many plant-based brands that emerged during the 2010s boom — driven primarily by consumer marketing, venture capital, and brand building — Ojah’s competitive advantage is rooted in:

• Process engineering depth: mastery of HME parameters to control texture, bite, and juiciness across product formats
• Clean label: minimal ingredient list (protein + water) enabling customers to build simpler finished products
• Scalable manufacturing: one of Europe’s largest dedicated HME facilities, capable of supplying major retail and foodservice volumes
• Ingredient flexibility: demonstrated capability to process soy, pea, and other plant protein concentrates through the same basic platform

This positions Ojah more as an industrial ingredient and technology company than a consumer brand — analogous in structure to a dairy ingredient supplier or a functional protein manufacturer, rather than a direct-to-consumer food brand.

The company’s origins in the Dutch food technology ecosystem — specifically the network of practitioners from ATO-DLO, TOP b.v., and Wageningen University & Research — reflect the broader Dutch strength in food process engineering: pilot plant infrastructure, hygienic design, scale-up expertise, and integration of protein science with industrial processing. Ojah is considered one of the earlier commercial validations of HME at industrial scale in Europe, predating the global surge of investment in plant-based protein by several years.