Cal-Maine Foods Inc. announced Oct. 10 that it has reached a definitive agreement to acquire substantially all of the assets of Featherland Egg Farms Inc. relating to its commercial shell egg production, processing, distribution and sale business.

The assets to be acquired, subject to the completion of this transaction, include commercial egg production and processing facilities with a current capacity for approximately 600,000 laying hens, a feed mill and related production and distribution facilities located near Marion, Texas. The company expects to close the transaction in the next few weeks.

“We are pleased to announce the acquisition of the Featherland Egg Farms assets. This transaction is consistent with our strategy to expand our business through selective acquisitions,” Cal-Maine Foods chairman and chief executive officer Dolph Baker said.

He noted that the facilities are located near many of the company’s other locations as well as major market areas in south Texas and added that “we intend to capitalize on specific market opportunities created by this additional production capacity.”

Baker continued, “We look forward to the opportunity to extend our market reach and deliver greater value to both our customers and shareholders.”

Cal-Maine Foods is primarily engaged in the production, grading, packing and sale of fresh shell eggs, including conventional, cage-free, organic and nutritionally enhanced eggs. The company, headquartered in Jackson, Miss., is the largest producer and distributor of fresh shell eggs in the U.S. and sells the majority of its shell eggs in states across the southwestern, southeastern, midwestern and mid-Atlantic regions of the U.S.