Smithfield Meats is Selling out to a China Company

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kathrynn

Legendary Pitmaster
Original poster
OTBS Member
Jun 13, 2012
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Madison, AL
[h1]I know there is a no-no about links off site. So I cut and pasted the article.  I do not like this at all.  How am I...a consumer going to be able to tell which is which.  I did check this out to make sure it's not false.  Got the information from Mike Davis...of Lotta Bull BBQ today.[/h1]
Not happy!

Kat
[h1] [/h1][h1] [/h1][h1]Smithfield to Be Sold to Chinese Meat Processor[/h1]BY MICHAEL J. DE LA MERCED  AND MARK SCOTT
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Keith Srakocic/Associated PressSmithfield’s brands include Smithfield, Eckrich, Farmland, Armour and others.

10:45 a.m. | Updated

Shuanghui International of China agreed on Wednesdayto buy the American meat processor Smithfield Foodsfor about $4.7 billion, in one of the biggest moves by a Chinese company into the United States to date.

Under the terms of the deal, Shuanghui, which is the largest pork processor in China, will pay $34 a share for Smithfield, 31 percent above the company’s closing share price on Tuesday.

The deal is meant to give Smithfield, one of the world’s biggest pork producers, entryway into China. Smithfield has looked for ways to export its meat to the country, one of the biggest markets for pork, as growth in other markets has slowed.

The company eventually settled on a deal with Shuanghui, a Chinese counterpart that it has known for four years.

But it will likely draw close government scrutiny over Chinese food standards, especially amid a number of incidents like a recent scare over bird flu. Though Smithfield has argued that the deal is meant to sell American pork outside of the country and not import Chinese products, regulators are likely to ensure that the company does not lower its quality standards.

Shuanghui, also known as Shineway, is China’s largest pork producer and is owned in part by an investment firm run by Goldman Sachs. It has around $1.6 billion of assets and factories across China, as well as operating in other Asia countries like Japan and Korea, according to the company’s website.

The company, based in central China, is the parent company of the Henan Shuanghui Investment & Development Company, which has been listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange since the late 1990s.

In 2011, Shuanghui was at the center of a meat scandal after some of its farms were found to have fed a chemical harmful to humans to livestock.

The acquisition, which is subject to regulatory approval by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, is expected to close in the second half of the year.

Shares in Smithfield leaped over 25 percent in premarket trading on Wednesday, to $32.50. They have risen nearly 28 percent over the past 12 months.

Barclays  and the law firms Simpson Thacher & Bartlett andMcGuire Woods are advising Smithfield Foods, while Morgan Stanley  and the law firms Paul Hastings and Troutman Sanders are advising Shuanghui.

[h4]Tags[/h4]Shuanghui InternationalSmithfield Foods Inc

 
I read that in Dredge Report 2013, If this is wrong to post please remove it, I had to reply, It makes a person wonder.
I cut and pasted the entire article ....so I wouldn't get in bad graces for a link.  Figured folks would read an article before they would  go to a link.  Sorry...but it's a bit upsetting.  I really like the Smithfield products.

Kat
 
Exactly....and there is no telling where some of our foods are made these days.  I do know...from being a farm child...the cost of feed right now is so high due to the corn drought last year.  A lot of farmers are having to sell off their livestock due to rising costs.  Meat prices are going up due to the rising costs too.

Kat
 
It's a shame and Smithfield Foods makes so many different brands - Eckrich, Farmland, Armour, Cook's, Gwaltney, John Morrell, Kretschmar, and Curly's to name a few.

This makes you wonder exactly what they will put in the products "In 2011, Shuanghui was at the center of a meat scandal after some of its farms were found to have fed a chemical harmful to humans to livestock"

Guess I'll be ramping up my sausage making cause I won't be buying any of that.
 
MSNBC had an article about it too.  Apparently they are not going to close any of the facilities in the US. 

Interesting excerpts from that article:

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"Shuanghui has 13 facilities that produce more than 2.7 million tons of meat per year. Under the agreement, there will be no closures at Smithfield's facilities and locations, including its Smithfield, Va., headquarters, the companies said. Smithfield's existing management team will remain in place and Shuanghui also will honor the collective bargaining agreements in place with Smithfield workers. The company has about 46,000 employees."

"Smithfield CEO Larry Pope called the move a "great transaction for all Smithfield stakeholders, as well as for American farmers and U.S. agriculture."

In recent months, Smithfield's second-largest shareholder, Continental Grain Co., has been pushing Smithfield to consider splitting itself up, saying it was time for the company to "get serious about creating shareholder value." Following a March letter from Continental Grain, Smithfield said it would review the suggestions "in due course." Representatives from Continental Grain did not immediate provide comment regarding Wednesday's news.

"pork producers like Smithfield have been caught in a tug of war with consumers. The company needs to raise prices to offset rising commodity costs, namely the corn it uses for feed. But consumers are still extremely sensitive to price changes in the current economy. By raising prices, Smithfield risks cutting into its sales should consumers cut back or buy cheaper meats, such as chicken."

--------

Couple of points by me:

1.  Smithfield is the one of the main suppliers for Costco I think.  Wonder if this changes anything.

2. commodity costs are rising for feed (increasing pork costs) because of ethanol subsidies.  Corn is diverted for ethanol.  Dumb IMO.  especially since the meat producers end up paying for imported grain to feed stock.

3.  Chicken is not a substitute for Pork.
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MAN...
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.

I buy a lot of ribs from Sam' s Club and they are mostly Smithfield!  What the heck am I gonna do now?

This sucks majorly.

Bill
 
I am liking the banter.  Don't like that they have sold out....understand why....but do not like it. 

WPS....I like your points and understand about the Ethanol.

Bill....I know!!!!! I really like the Smithfield St Louis Ribs from Sams and Costco!!!!

Kat
 
I read a different article that said the main reason for the sale was to allow penetration in the China pork market.
WC....I saw that in that article.  Said that they didn't want "that meat" to come here...wanted to branch out there. Still like to have something that remains sacred and made or grown here in the USA.

Kat
 
Ugh...I read this today in the Tampa Bay Times...  What stood out as well is below...The company "promised" and "apologized"?!?!? Not good enough for me!

Shuanghui, which also goes by the English name Shineway Group, is a prominent meat processor in a country plagued by food safety scandals. In recent years, the Chinese government has announced a crackdown on foodmakers amid an outbreak of bird flu and infamous images of thousands of dead pigs floating in the Huangpu River in the city of Shanghai.

Two years ago, China's biggest state-run television company, China Central Television, broadcast an investigation that found that Shuanghui was selling pork produced with clenbuterol, which is banned as a food additive in the United States, the European Union and China because of health risks.

That year, the country arrested scores of people for producing, selling and using clenbuterol, which is believed to produce leaner meat.

Shuanghui apologized and promised to improve its food safety program.
 
This may drive up the price here cause they have a whole new market to sell to. Their are a lot of mouths in red China. On other note beef hit a all time high last Friday before the holiday weekend.
 
You will see a lot of the US meat diverted to the china market. So yes it will drive up prices as supply in the US lowers.

So my question is how does a company with $1.6 billion in total assets "buy" a company for $4.7 billion?  Should be the other way around.  Something stinks here (and of course Goldman Sachs is involved).
 
You will see a lot of the US meat diverted to the china market. So yes it will drive up prices as supply in the US lowers.

So my question is how does a company with $1.6 billion in total assets "buy" a company for $4.7 billion?   Should be the other way around.  Something stinks here (and of course Goldman Sachs is involved).
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....... layaway?   
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Edit: It looks like they're getting a $7 billion loan from Bank of China and Morgan Stanley.     

Is there any good news in today's world? 
 
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You will see a lot of the US meat diverted to the china market. So yes it will drive up prices as supply in the US lowers.

So my question is how does a company with $1.6 billion in total assets "buy" a company for $4.7 billion?  Should be the other way around.  Something stinks here (and of course Goldman Sachs is involved).
Seems reminiscent of when Kmart filed bankruptcy and purchased Sears several months later.
 
th_dunno-1%5B1%5D.gif

....... layaway?        

Is there any good news in today's world? 

This is why I don't watch, listen to, or read the news. There is really nothing I can do about it and it is going to affect me whether I know about it or not. My way I don't get PO'd about everything and when it happens I don't even know!
Just like this Smithfield thing, can you do anything about it? But I'm reading a few people are all upset by it. I won't let it affect my daily happiness!
 
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