Anzco Foods’ parent company, Yonekyu, has been cleared by New Zealand’s competition regulator, the Commerce Commission, to buy Greenlea Group in a deal valued at $657 million. ComCom said it believed the deal would be unlikely to “substantially lessen” competition.
Greenlea Premier Meats, founded by Peter Egan in 1993, operates processing facilities in Hamilton and Morrinsville. The company produces and exports 100 per cent grass-fed beef to more than 40 countries.
Commerce Commission chair John Small said the investigation found the merged business would continue to face sufficient competition in the acquisition of cattle for processing and the supply of processed beef products, beef by-products, and rendered products.
“We do not consider that the acquisition will change conditions in any relevant acquisition or supply markets such that coordination is more likely,” Small said.
Established in 1984 as the Asian New Zealand Meat Company, Anzco Foods is owned by Japan’s Itoham Yonekyu Holdings and processes and exports beef and lamb to more than 80 markets worldwide.
