Just weeks after purchasing a majority stake in one of India's largest poultry companies, Tyson Foods Inc., Springdale, Ark., acquired a 60-percent stake in one of China's largest poultry processors. News media reported that James Rice, general manager for Tyson's China office, said Tyson agreed to buy the Xinchang Group, located in China's coastal province of Shandong. Rice noted the deal for China's fifth-largest poultry producer (US$289 million in annual sales) still awaits due diligence and government approval. Xinchang reportedly will double its capacity to 125 million chickens per year once a new plant opens this August.
In keeping with a February 2008 announcement, Tyson also is building a fully integrated poultry complex in Haiman City, in China's Jiangsu province, near Shanghai. That operation is scheduled to begin operations next year.
Tyson announced on June 30 that purchased a majority stake in Godrej Foods Ltd. in Mumbai, India. A new venture called Godrej Tyson Foods operates a chicken processing plant in Mumbai and another in Bangalore. The two facilities have a combined production capacity of 60,000 birds per day. Initial annual sales are expected to be US$50 million, Tyson said.