U.S. agricultural trader Cargill Inc said Wednesday it has signed an agreement to acquire Five Star Custom Foods, Ltd, a Texas-based company specializing in cooked protein products, soups and sauces for restaurants and food processors.
Cargill did not disclose terms of the deal, but said it expected the transaction to be finalized this summer after a regulatory review.
The 151-year-old grain trader has recently been refocusing its operations by exiting lower-margin businesses and expanding deeper into higher-margin endeavors, like food ingredients and aquaculture, to capitalize on consumer trends such as simpler ingredient labels. The company sold its U.S. pork business last year.
The Five Star acquisition includes facilities in Fort Worth, Texas, and Nashville, Tennessee, that currently produce products including meat toppings for pizza, pulled pork and chili.
“Adding Five Star Custom Foods to Cargill’s protein business will provide us with new capabilities we currently do not have, while allowing us to be more nimble in our ability to meet the ever-changing needs of our customers and consumers,” Brian Sikes, vice president of Cargill’s protein businesses, said in a statement.
Cargill bought a ground beef plant in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in 2012 and owns a cattle feed yard in nearby Bovina, Texas. It also operates beef and turkey processing facilities in the state and a food distribution center in San Antonio, which will complement the Five Star acquisition, Cargill spokesman Mike Martin said.
By Karl Plume
Source: Reuters
Consumer healthcare firm Haleon has appointed Tate & Lyle executive Dawn Allen as its new chief financial officer, effective 1 November 2024. Allen will succeed Tobias Hestler, who has decided to step down from the role, citing a long-term health condition, the company said.
The group said that the bottling line, which adds 6,500 square metres to the existing 60,700-square-metre site, is the next necessary stage in the company’s international development. The leading brand in Campari Group’s global sales, demand for the Italian bitter apéritif has grown by 500% in the last decade.
The partnership will see Coca-Cola adopt new technology to foster innovation and productivity globally. Through the deal, Coca-Cola has made a $1.1 billion commitment to the Microsoft Cloud and its generative AI capabilities.
