Chinese agribusiness giant COFCO signed a $284M deal on December 23 to acquire 100% of shares in Guangzhou-based Maverick Food Co. Ltd., a joint venture of Smithfield Foods and Artal Group, according to a company statement.
The deal could help COFCO grab more market share, as Maverick now has 47% of market share in Guangzhou and 36% in Shenzhen, according to an article in Nanfang Daily.
Under the deal, COFCO will help Maverick increase its low-temperature meat and frozen meat product sales in northern China and second-tier cities, according to the company.
COFCO aims to develop an integrated meat industry chain, planning to pour more than $2B for three million-head hog operations in China.
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