TOKYO -- Marubeni has added a U.S. beef processor to its portfolio, anticipating greater exports to China after Beijing lifted a long-standing ban on meat from American cattle in June.
The Japanese trading house on Tuesday acquired all of Kansas-based Creekstone Farms, a distributor of premium beef, in a deal worth about $170 million, including liabilities. With the resumption of American beef exports to China, Marubeni expects the country's appetite for the meat to grow as its middle class expands.
