Smithfield Foods has completed the sale of its domestic beef operations to Brazil’s JBS.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
Smithfield Beef, the US meat giant’s beef processing and cattle feeding operation, was sold for US$565m in cash, the company said yesterday (23 October).
The sale included 100% of Five Rivers Ranch Cattle Feeding, which was previously in a 50/50 joint venture with Continental Grain Company.
Following the closure of the JBS transaction, Smithfield Beef acquired Continental Grain’s 50% investment in Five Rivers for 2,166,667 shares of Smithfield Foods’ common stock.
Smithfield Foods said it will use the net proceeds of the JBS transaction, comprising of $565m, plus around $150m in net proceeds from the sale of the retained cattle inventory, for debt reduction.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalData“This transaction is significant for our shareholders,” said Larry Pope, Smithfield Foods president and chief executive officer. “We have dramatically improved our liquidity to about $900m, which should help us weather the difficult markets ahead. Our balance sheet is much stronger today.
“Additionally, we have exited the beef business, where we had a small market share and little potential to grow.”
As previously announced, the transaction excluded all live cattle inventories held by Smithfield Beef and Five Rivers, and any associated debt.
