Darling Ingredients and Tessenderlo Group Advance Strategic Partnership With Definitive Agreement to Form New Global Collagen Company
Darling Ingredients announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with Tessenderlo Group to formally combine the collagen and gelatin divisions of both companies into a newly created global enterprise. This agreement marks a major step toward building one of the world’s leading companies in collagen-based health, wellness, and nutrition products—an industry experiencing rapid global expansion and heightened consumer interest.
The newly structured company will merge Darling Ingredients’ long-established collagen and gelatin business, known under the Rousselot brand, with Tessenderlo Group’s PB Leiner business, a major player in gelatin and collagen solutions. One of the notable aspects of the agreement is that neither company will be required to provide cash or make an initial capital investment to form the joint entity. Instead, both organizations will contribute their existing operating assets, technologies, and commercial capabilities to drive the next phase of growth.
Darling Ingredients first signaled its intent to pursue this collaboration in May, but the execution of this definitive agreement further formalizes the vision, scope, and structure of the planned enterprise. Under the terms of the agreement, Darling Ingredients will hold an 85% majority ownership stake in the new company, while Tessenderlo Group will retain the remaining 15% ownership. This distribution reflects the relative scale and strategic assets each company is contributing, while also establishing Darling Ingredients as the primary governing entity of the combined operations.
The joint company, once operational, is expected to launch with significant scale from day one. Initially, the business is projected to generate approximately $1.5 billion in annual revenue. It will also command an impressive production capacity of about 200,000 metric tons of gelatin and collagen annually. Its combined infrastructure will include 22 facilities spanning South America, North America, Europe, and Asia, providing a diversified global footprint capable of serving customers across all major regions and market segments.
With its substantial manufacturing and R&D capabilities, the new enterprise will be well positioned to capitalize on rising demand for collagen. In recent years, collagen has emerged as one of the most dynamic and fast-growing categories within the broader health, beauty, functional food, and nutritional supplement industries. Consumers increasingly look to collagen products to support skin health, joint mobility, sports recovery, metabolic health, and overall wellness, creating a surge in demand for high-quality ingredients and innovative formulations.
The combined expertise of Rousselot and PB Leiner provides the partnership with a comprehensive portfolio spanning gelatin for food and pharmaceutical applications, collagen peptides for nutritional uses, and specialty ingredient technologies. Integrating these strengths will allow the company to enhance its market position while accelerating its ability to bring new, science-driven solutions to market.
A key focus area for the future company will be the continued development and expansion of the Nextida portfolio. Nextida products aim to deliver targeted health benefits supported by scientific research, enabling the company to differentiate itself in the competitive global collagen industry. According to both partners, the expanded joint capabilities will unlock new opportunities to scale the Nextida line and introduce advanced formulations that support improved earnings potential over the long term.
Darling Ingredients’ Chairman and CEO, Randall C. Stuewe, emphasized the strategic importance of this partnership in supporting the company’s growth strategy and strengthening its leadership position in the global collagen market. “This strategic partnership is expected to create new opportunities for growth, while expanding options to enhance shareholder value for Darling Ingredients,” Stuewe said. “Collagen continues to be the fastest-growing part of our food segment, and with PB Leiner’s talented team, assets and product portfolio, we are well positioned to accelerate innovation, scale and growth in this dynamic market.”
Stuewe’s comments highlight the remarkable momentum of the collagen sector within Darling Ingredients’ broader business portfolio. The company has invested heavily in collagen innovations and sees this product category as a major long-term driver of profitability. By aligning with PB Leiner, Darling Ingredients expects to unlock operational synergies, expand its global reach, and deepen its engagement with fast-growing health and nutrition markets.
Luc Tack, CEO of Tessenderlo Group, also expressed confidence in the partnership’s ability to strengthen the future prospects of both companies. “This final agreement is an important step forward in building a stronger future for our partnership,” Tack commented. He highlighted the shared vision between the organizations and the value of combining complementary strengths to build a leader in the sector.
Integration of the two businesses is expected to occur over time and in phases. As the companies merge operations, they anticipate opportunities to identify cost efficiencies, streamline production processes, and coordinate global supply chains. The combined entity’s scale and manufacturing diversity will support improved resilience in global markets, allowing it to meet rising demand while mitigating operational risks across regions.
The joint company will also emphasize innovation, leveraging the combined R&D teams of both Rousselot and PB Leiner. Together, these groups have decades of scientific and application expertise in collagen and gelatin technologies, supporting product development across industries such as sports nutrition, personal care, medical applications, nutraceuticals, and food processing. With deeper collaboration, the new enterprise expects to accelerate breakthroughs in next-generation collagen formulations, functional ingredient design, and specialized processing techniques.
Collagen’s increasing global popularity is tied not only to shifting consumer preferences but also to broader trends in health-conscious lifestyles. As consumers place greater emphasis on preventive wellness, natural ingredients, and scientifically backed functional foods, collagen products have surged in popularity. This has expanded opportunities for manufacturers who can deliver premium-grade ingredients with consistent quality, traceability, and performance—all areas where the combined enterprise intends to strengthen its leadership.
The agreement is still subject to standard regulatory approvals, including review by authorities in several jurisdictions where the new company will operate. Pending these approvals, the companies expect the transaction to close in 2026. Once completed, the newly created company will operate as a standalone entity focused entirely on advancing collagen and gelatin innovation, improving global production capabilities, and serving growing customer demand across multiple industries.
With this agreement, Darling Ingredients and Tessenderlo Group are positioning themselves to shape the future of the global collagen market. By merging their assets, expertise, and strategic resources, they aim to build a stronger, more agile, and more innovative company capable of leading one of the fastest-growing sectors in health and nutrition. As regulatory reviews proceed and integration planning continues, the partnership will set the stage for a transformative new chapter in both companies’ histories—one rooted in science, global scale, and the pursuit of long-term value creation.
About Darling Ingredients
A pioneer in circularity, Darling Ingredients Inc. (NYSE: DAR) takes material from the animal agriculture and food industries, and transforms them into valuable ingredients that nourish people, feed animals and crops, and fuel the world with renewable energy. The company operates over 260 facilities in more than 15 countries and processes about 15% of the world’s animal agricultural by-products, produces about 30% of the world’s collagen (both gelatin and hydrolyzed collagen), and is one of the largest producers of renewable energy
About Tessenderlo Group
Tessenderlo Group is an industrial group that focuses on agriculture, valorizing bio-residuals, machinery, mechanical engineering, electronics, energy, and providing industrial solutions with a focus on water. With its headquarters in Belgium, the group is active in over 100 countries and has a global team of more than 7,000 employees.
This release may contain “forward-looking statements,” which include information concerning the Company’s financial performance, plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future earnings, cash flow, performance and other information that is not historical information, including information concerning the outlook and projected performance of the proposed joint venture company to be formed with Tessenderlo. When used in this release, the words “expects,” “anticipates,” “projects,” “plans,” “intends,” “believes,” “will” and variations of such words or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are based upon current expectations and beliefs and various assumptions. There can be no assurance that the Company or the joint venture company to be formed with Tessenderlo will realize these expectations or that these beliefs will prove correct. There are a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in this release. Numerous factors, many of which are beyond the Company’s control, could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed as forward-looking statements. These include factors which could preclude the Company from closing the proposed transaction with Tessenderlo or realizing the anticipated benefits of the proposed transaction. Other risk factors include those that are discussed in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which it is made or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances.
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