In 2012, second-year engineering student Antoine van Heerden decided to sell his parents' macadamias for some extra cash. However, he quickly learned that nuts weren't a top priority among university students. Undeterred, he got creative and discovered that when roasted and ground, macadamias make the creamiest, most irresistible golden butter. Soon, Antoine was roasting, grinding, and bottling in his student accomodation. Friends, roommates, and fellow athletes pitched in to help with labelling, twisting lids, and manning his stand at the local farmers' market. It wasn’t long before everyone who tasted it wanted more.

By the time Antoine was preparing for his Master’s at Stellenbosch University, the popularity of his nut butters had skyrocketed. As an athlete, Antoine knew firsthand the importance of good nutrition, and he believed that his product could make a real difference in people’s lives. Recognizing the potential to share this wholesome, nutritious option with the world, he made the decision to forgo his studies and fully commit to his business, determined to spread the benefits of his creations far and wide.

With blood, sweat and tears, and a few lucky breaks, the business was starting to become recognized. ButtaNutt moved into the Launch Lab Entrepreneurial hub on Stellenbosch campus. In 2016 ButtaNutt won the Western Cape’s PERA award (Premier’s Entrepreneurship Recognition Awards) for best Emerging Agri-Processing Business. The butters were accepted onto the shelves of Wellness Warehouse, Pick n Pay and Dis-Chem. In 2017 ButtaNutt was invited to participate in international trade shows with the DTI. 

Production moved to Worcester, then Maitland and eventually found its forever home in the rural, picturesque and hot-as-hell town of Paarl. Happy and settled, with an incredible team, and FSSC22000 accreditation, the business kept on growing.

In 2015 the ButtaNutt team had started home-type experimental trials on nut milks – hours of squeezing cheese cloth, only to watch the curdles appear in their coffee. Antoine travelled to the US in 2016 to check out the scene and became hooked on the idea of producing commercially viable milks locally. This dream eventually became a reality in 2021 when ButtaNutt launched 3 milk alternatives. The reception was overwhelmingly positive and soon milk production far overshadowed the nut butters. 

In 2022 PepsiCo invested in ButtaNutt and this enabled the installation of a brand new state-of-the-art Tetra Pak processing and packaging plant. Capacity jumped from 20,000L to 100,000L per day, offering a lot of scope for additional products, co-packing and export opportunities. 

What’s next, who knows? ButtaNutt has always been passionate about New Product Development. We’ve dabbled with ice-cream, chocolate, rusks and peanuts, one thing’s for sure, there will be many more nutty, wholesome or trend-pushing plant-powered products to devour.