Smithfield Foods Inc., the largest hog and pork producer in the world, headquartered in Smithfield, Va., has just reported that the company has reached definitive terms with Hong Kong's Shuanghui International Holdings Ltd. in which Shuanghui is set to acquire Smithfield for $34.00 per share, or about $4.7 billion.
The agreement has been unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies but is subject to certain closing conditions, including approval by Smithfield stockholders and approval by The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, according to the announcement.
The transaction is scheduled to be completed in the second half of this year.
Smithfield said it would become a fully owned, independent subsidiary of Shuanghui, which is the majority stockholder in China's largest meat processor, Henan Shuanghui Investment & Development Co.
The agreement also calls for Shuanghui to assume about $2.5 billion in Smithfield debt, bring the total value of the deal to $7.1 billion, according to the announcement.
Smithfield chief executive officer and president C. Larry Pope said the company does not anticipate any changes in how it does business in the U.S. and throughout the world.
Smithfield has sales totaling $13 billion.