Reuters — Smithfield Foods said it would buy parent of the Farmer John and Saag’s Specialty Meats brands, and farm operations in three U.S. states from Hormel Foods for US$145 million in cash.
Smithfield will buy Clougherty Packing as well as hog farm operations under PFFJ, or Pigs for Farmer John, in California, Arizona and Wyoming, expanding its supply chain in the U.S.
The businesses being acquired contributed about $500 million in sales and about three cents per share in earnings to Hormel in fiscal 2016 (all figures US$).
Smithfield, bought by WH Group in 2013 for $4.7 billion, is the world’s largest pork processor and hog producer.
“While the businesses have performed well, they no longer align with our company’s growth strategies,” Hormel CEO Jim Snee said in a statement.
Hormel — best known as the maker of Spam luncheon meat, and owner of Clougherty Packing since 2004 — said Farmer John harvests about 7,400 hogs per day.
Shares of Hormel Foods were marginally up at $35.10 in after-hours trading on Monday.
— Reporting for Reuters by Jessica Kuruthukulangara in Bangalore.
