CJ CheilJedang Corp. finally found a buyer for its sprawling feed and livestock business after two unsuccessful attempts to exit the sector. The South Korean food giant agreed to sell CJ Feed&Care to Netherlands-based Royal De Heus for 1.2 trillion won ($854.5 million), according to investment banking sources.
The deal marks the company’s third effort to divest the unit, which operates 17 feed mills across Vietnam, Indonesia, South Korea, Cambodia and the Philippines. Previous negotiations with Dutch feed maker Nutreco collapsed in 2019 over pricing disputes, while a 2020 sale process failed to attract bidders.
The disposal comes as CJ CheilJedang grapples with mounting financial pressure from aggressive expansion, including its $1.84 billion acquisition of frozen food maker Schwan’s Company. The parent company has been shedding non-core assets, having already sold its Chinese food subsidiary Jixiangju and Brazilian soybean crusher CJ Selecta last year.
CJ Feed&Care posted back-to-back losses in 2022 and 2023 before returning to a 74.6 billion won operating profit last year on revenue of 2.31 trillion won. The unit’s struggles contributed to a 22.4% drop in the parent company’s consolidated operating profit in 2023.
The transaction requires regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the first half of 2026.
