Continental Grain and Cargill to Acquire Sanderson Farms in $4.5 Billion Take-Private Transaction

Paul, Weiss is advising Continental Grain in its all-cash acquisition, alongside global food corporation Cargill, of Sanderson Farms Inc. for $203 per share, representing a total equity value of $4.53 billion. Continental Grain is a privately owned global investor, owner and operator of companies across the food and agribusiness spectrum. Sanderson Farms is a leading producer and distributor of fresh, frozen and minimally prepared chicken.

Upon completion of the transaction, Cargill and Continental Grain will combine Sanderson Farms with U.S. poultry producer Wayne Farms, a subsidiary of Continental Grain, to form a new, privately held poultry business. The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2021 or early 2022, subject to customary closing conditions and approvals.

The Paul, Weiss team includes, among others, corporate partners Steven Williams, Thomas de la Bastide and Raphael Russo, and counsel Stephen Koo, Oliver Board, Philip Heimowitz and David Curtiss; tax partners Scott Sontag and Patrick Karsnitz; executive compensation counsel Ron Aizen; litigation partners Aidan Synnott and Geoffrey Chepiga, and counsel Peter Jaffe, Steven Herzog and Rachel Fiorill; intellectual property partner Charles Googe; real estate partner Peter Fisch; personal representation partner Alan Halperin and counsel Emma Sobol; environmental counsel William O’Brien; and antitrust counsel Yuni Sobel and Marta Kelly.