BENEO, a leading manufacturer of functional ingredients for food, feed, and pharma, is pleased to announce Niels E. Hower has been appointed as the newest Member of the Executive Board of Directors at BENEO GmbH with immediate effect. In his role, Hower will be responsible for BENEO’s portfolio of plant-based proteins, including Meatless, a specialised company for plant-based texturising solutions.

With an MBA in Economics and more than 25 years of experience in the retail, wholesale and life science sectors, Hower has occupied several senior management roles across his career, where some of his key responsibilities have included category/product management and operations. Prior to his new role at BENEO, Hower was positioned as EVP of Global Procurement at Fresenius Kabi. He also co-founded the Doctor Chococo brand, which launched the first milk chocolate bar containing vitamin D and other beneficial ingredients.

In 2022, BENEO acquired Meatless, a supplier of textured plant-based ingredients with a unique portfolio of solutions derived from different raw materials. Within his new role leading BENEO’s plant-based protein division, Hower will be focused on continuing the development of Meatless to meet growing demand for plant-based products, alongside BENEO’s wider ingredient portfolio, including faba bean ingredients and textured wheat protein.

Commenting on his new role, Hower explains: “I am happy to join the BENEO team whose technical and nutritional expertise and longstanding experience has made the company a leading player for prebiotic chicory root fibres, functional carbohydrates and specialty rice ingredients. My ambition is to grow the plant-based protein business as well as Meatless in a similar way, by accelerating market expansion and extending our solutions. In the future, we will continue to grow our range into more products to satisfy different market needs for meat and fish alternatives.”

BENEO has long-term experience in developing and producing plant-based functional ingredients from natural sources for the food, feed, and pharmaceutical industries. By supporting health and optimising taste and texture, they help improve the nutritional and technical properties of a wide variety of products.

Through a unique chain of expertise, BENEO offers customers advice and inspiration on new product ideas that support a healthy lifestyle in a holistic way. This includes the BENEO-Institute that provides decisive insights into nutrition science and legislation, and the BENEO-Technology Center that consults in application technology.

Formed in 2007, BENEO is active in over 80 countries, employs more than 1000 people, and has six state-of-the-art production sites in Belgium, Chile, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands that deliver high-quality ingredients at all times.