Sanderson deal gains regulatory approval in China, Mexico

The proposed sale of Sanderson Farms has received approval from antitrust regulators in China and Mexico, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Roy Graber Headshot
(Sanderson Farms)
(Sanderson Farms)

The proposed sale of Sanderson Farms has received approval from antitrust regulators in China and Mexico, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

According to the filing, signed by Mike Cockrell, Sanderson Farms treasurer, chief financial officer and chief legal officer, the proposed transaction has gained regulatory approval from the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China and the Federal Economic Commission of Mexico.

A copy of that filing can be found in a Form 8-K on the Sanderson Farms Investor Relations webpage.

The filing references a deal reached between Sanderson Farms, Cargill and Continental Grain Company, in which Cargill and Continental Grain reached a joint venture to acquire Sanderson Farms for a price of $4.53 billion or $203 per share. That proposed deal was initially announced on August 9.

Once the acquisition is completed, Sanderson Farms will be merged with Wayne Farms, a subsidiary of Continental Grain. Clint Rivers, presently the CEO of Wayne Farms, will lead the combined company.

The transaction is expected to close in either the fourth calendar quarter of 2021 or the first quarter of 2022.

According to the WATTPoultry.com Top Companies Database, Sanderson Farms is the third largest poultry company in the United States while Wayne Farms is the seventh. Sanderson Farms produced 94.31 million pounds of ready-to-cook chicken on a weekly basis, while Wayne Farms produced 48.8 million pounds weekly.

A combined company, according to those figures, would still be the third-largest poultry company in the United States, as the second largest company, Pilgrim’s Pride, produced 161.66 pounds on a weekly basis.

However, since the proposed transaction was announced, Wayne Farms announced that it is divesting of its poultry complex in Laurel, Mississippi. The complex was sold to Amick Farms, a subsidiary of OSI Group. OSI also has poultry operations in Australia through the Turosi subsidiary and in China through the Otto & Sons Weihai subsidiary.

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