The Australian Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) has approved $1.13bn bid by JBS USA to acquire Australian Consolidated Food Holdings (Primo), said treasurer Joe Hockey.
With this approval, US subsidiary of the Brazilian meat processing company will be able to acquire Primo through its wholly owned unit JBS Smallgoods, Reuters reported.
Hockey was quoted by the news agency as saying: "The Government welcomes foreign investment in Australia and continues to ensure that investments are consistent with Australia's national interest."
The regulatory approval is subject to conditions, in which JBS will be responsible to maintain abattoir arrangements at a processing plant in the regional Australian town of Scone.
In addition, the company will be also required to provide a report every three years to Australia's foreign-investment watchdog, The Wall Street Journal said.
In Australia, any investment worth more than $197m by a foreign firm in a domestic company is required to receive approval from FIRB.
In February, JBS received approval from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) for this acquisition.
Image: Primo currently produces processed beef, pork and small goods, with its key small goods brands being Primo and Hans. Photo: courtesy of KEKO64/ freedigitalphotos.net.
