World Perspectives
livestock

Smithfield Bought by Chinese Firm

Smithfield Foods, the largest pork producer in the world, has been bought by China's largest meat producer, Shuanghui International Holdings Ltd. Shuanghui is publically traded on the Shanghai Exchange. When/if finalized, this would be the largest acquisition of a U.S. firm by a Chinese firm. Shuanghui agreed to pay $4.7 billion -- or $34 per share, a 31 percent premium over the previous day's closing share price of $25.97 -- to acquire 100 percent of Smithfield, which has 460 farms that raise 15.8 million hogs per year. That equates to roughly 25 percent of the U.S. pork supply. The deal includes an agreement not to close any Smithfield facilities and to maintain the company's collective bargaining agreement with roughly 46,000 employees...

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From WPI Consulting

Forecasting developments in production agriculture

On behalf of a private U.S. agricultural technology provider, WPI’s team generated an econometric model to forecast the movement of concentrated corn production north and west from the traditional U.S. Corn Belt. WPI’s model has subsequently provided quantitative support to a multi-million-dollar investment into short-season corn variety development. WPI’s methodology included a series of interviews with regional grain elevators and seed consultants. Emphasizing outreach and communication with stakeholders who possess intimate sectoral knowledge – on-the-ground insights – is a regular component of WPI’s methodologies, made possible by WPI’s ever-growing network of industry contacts.

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