Japanese company S Foods, backed by Marubeni has emerged as the frontrunner to buy Harvey Beef, Western Australia’s largest beef producer. Harvey Beef has been listed on the market for more than $40 million by its owner, Pacific Alliance Group, one of Asia’s biggest private equity funds. S Foods is already a major importer of Australian beef but this deal would gain the company a state-of-the-art plant in Australia that processes approximately 145,000 head of grain and grass fed cattle per year. It is believed that Pacific Alliance Group may also be looking to sell Queensland’s Kilcoy Pastoral Co.which has a processing capacity of 285,000 head per year and is 20% owned by struggling Elders. Marubeni which holds a large stake in S Foods, owner various assets in Australia including one of the biggest feedlots in the country with a capacity of 32,000 head whose biggest customer is S Foods.
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