SPRINGDALE, Ark. – Tyson Foods announced on Feb. 6 a definitive agreement to acquire Thai and European operations of Sáo Paulo-based BRF S.A. The company said the $340 million purchase includes four processing facilities in Thailand, one processing facility in the Netherlands and one processing facility in the United Kingdom.

“As noted when we acquired Keystone Foods on Nov. 30, we believe some of our biggest growth opportunities are in value-added foods and international markets,” said Noel White, president and CEO of Tyson Foods. “In addition to domestic benefits, the Keystone acquisition provided us with a scalable production platform in the Asian poultry market. The acquisition of these BRF facilities will help complement and strengthen our presence in Thailand, and provide new capabilities in Europe, enhancing our ability to serve growing global demand for value-added protein.”

The poultry operations in Thailand are vertically integrated and include a feed mill, hatchery, breeder farms, and contract growing operations supplying live birds for the four processing facilities. The Thai plants produce fresh and frozen, value-added raw and fully cooked poultry products including highly specialized cuts for retail and foodservice customers throughout Asia and other export markets, including Europe.

The processing locations in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom are supported by in-house innovation capabilities for developing further-processed chicken products for retail and foodservice customers in Europe. Currently, the products are sold under Grabits, Hot ‘N’ Kickin’Chicken, Speedy Pollo and the Sadia brands. There are also customer-owned brands produced at the locations.

“It’s estimated that approximately 90 percent of global protein consumption growth will occur outside the United States, with 60 percent of the volume growth coming from Asia over the next 5 years,” said Donnie King, group president of international for Tyson Foods. “Increasing our international footprint with in-country operations and export capabilities will help Tyson Foods strategically access new markets and better serve the growing global demand for our value-added protein.”

Tyson said the transaction is expected to close before the end of the company’s fiscal third quarter. Additional terms of the deal were not disclosed.