Washington | Reuters — Cargill and Continental Grain said on Friday that they had closed their deal to buy Sanderson Farms, the third largest chicken producer, in a deal worth some US$4.53 billion.
Under the deal, which was announced last August, Sanderson is being combined with Continental Grain subsidiary Wayne Farms. Sanderson will cease trading on Friday.
The new business, to be called Wayne-Sanderson Farms, will be headquartered at Oakwood, Ga., northeast of Atlanta, and will be led by Wayne Farms CEO Clint Rivers.
Any outstanding issues with the Justice Department were resolved prior to close, according to a person familiar with the matter.
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The deal had raised concerns on Capitol Hill, where lawmakers asked for the Justice Department to take a hard look at it because of fear of pushing up prices.
The Justice Department, which had been investigating the deal for antitrust concerns, declined comment.
Chicken wings and breasts have climbed 38 and 24 per cent since February year-over-year, respectively, according to research from Wells Fargo.
The Biden administration, concerned about price hikes in general and especially in the meat sector, announced in January that it would spend US$1 billion and issue new rules as a way to address a lack of “meaningful competition” in meat processing.
— Reporting for Reuters by Diane Bartz. Includes files from Glacier FarmMedia Network staff.
