WH Group, the largest pork supplier in the world, announced it wants to buy two packaged meat?manufacturers in Romania through Smithfield, its wholly-owned subsidiary, a move that will expand further the company’s operations in Europe.
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Smithfield (through its wholly-owned subsidiary) agreed to acquire 100% of the share capital of Elit and Vericom, conditional upon, among other things, obtaining anti-monopoly approval from the relevant regulatory authorities, the company said in a statement to the stock exchange.
“The Group expects the Acquisitions to give Smithfield a leading position in the Romanian packaged meats market with a branded portfolio of products sold in the higher margin traditional channel,” the Chinese group’s statement read.
Elit and Vericom produce nearly 25,000 metric tons of branded, packaged meats every year, for more than 12,000 customers. The two companies can grow their capacity to 45,000 metric tons annually. Elit and Vericom operate three packaged meats manufacturing facilities, five distribution centers and related assets in Romania.
