“The Antitrust division conducted an extensive indication by interviewing a significant number of individuals, including farmers, auction houses that sell cows bulls on behalf of farmers, retailers and competing meat packers and reviewed documents and other information from the parties and third parties,” DOJ Spokeswoman Gina Talamona told Agri-Pulse.
“We concluded that the transaction was unlikely to harm the
purchase of cows and bulls [from producers] and the sale of boxed beef to
consumers,” she said. “Our investigation focused on whether the proposed
transaction would harm competition at
In a statement issued at its headquarters in Sao Paolo,
Brazil, JBS S.A. that its U.S. subsidiary would assume ownership of the two
plants, each with capacity to process 1,100 head of cattle per day. “The beef
processing plant in
JBS completed the acquisition Jan. 14 of some Canadian
operations of XL Foods including a beef packing plant in Brooks, Alta.; a beef
packing plant in
The DOJ spokeswoman declined to comment on whether it had issued a “second request” for information – a step in the investigatory process that indicates heightened concern – as requested by the Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund United Stockgrowers of America (R-CALF USA) and 37 allied groups in a letter late last year urging DOJ to “undertake an expanded, probing, and in-depth investigation” into the proposed acquisition.
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