TOP STORIES

 
Pilgrim's Pride to Acquire Kerry's Meats and Meals Business 

Pilgrim's Pride Corp. agreed to acquire the Meats and Meals business of Kerry Consumer Foods, as the company expands its prepared foods and branded products business. The food company said the Meats and Meals businesses have an enterprise value around 680 million British pounds ($947.1 million).

 
Kroger Sales Fall in 1Q but Remain Well Above 2019 Level 

Kroger Co. Thursday posted lower sales on a year-over-year basis in the latest quarter amid a comparison to the economic shock of the Covid-19 pandemic's onset, though the company's comparable revenue figure remained higher than 2019's first-quarter level by a double-digit percentage. The Cincinnati-based supermarket company logged first-quarter net earnings of 18 cents a share, a decline from $1.52 a share in the year-ago quarter. Total net earnings attributable to the company were $140 million, compared with $1.21 billion in the year-ago period.

 

STORIES OF INTEREST

 
Danone to Sell Plant-Based Vega Brand 

Danone SA on Thursday said that it agreed to sell its plant-based brand Vega to funds managed by U.S.-based private equity investment firm WM Partners. The French food company said the sale is part of its capital allocation optimization and the strategic review of its portfolio and assets announced last year.

 
Supreme Court Rules Cargill, Nestle Can't Be Sued in U.S. for Abuses in Ivory Coast 

WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Nestle USA and Cargill Inc. can't be sued in U.S. courts for abuses allegedly committed in Ivory Coast, where plaintiffs accused the food-processing giants of obtaining cocoa from plantations that relied on the forced labor of children. The court, in a decision by Justice Clarence Thomas, said the plaintiffs' case didn't have enough of a connection to the U.S. to proceed.

 

FUTURES MARKETS

 
Livestock Futures Dive in Larger Agricultural Slump -- Market Talk 

1458 ET - Livestock futures trading on the CBOT fell hard Thursday, following grains lower as inflation fears spooked traders as a whole. "Today seems to be tied to the general selling wave that is engulfing the commodity sector," says independent livestock traders Dan Norcini. For hogs in particular, selling was linked to indications that China has nearly completed the rebuild of its hog herd to pre-African swine fever levels, although the validity of these claims are being questioned by some. Lean hog futures finished limit-down, dropping 4.5 cents per pound to $1.11 per pound, a 3.9% drop. Live cattle futures, meanwhile, fell 3.1% to $1.211 per pound. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com; @kirkmaltais)

 

CASH MARKETS

 
Estimated U.S. Pork Packer Margin Index - Jun 17 
 
All figures are on a per-head basis. 
 
Date     Standard Margin       Estimated margin 
         Operating Index         at vertically - 
                             integrated operations 
 
Jun 17       -$ 22.25            +$112.53 
Jun 16       -$ 38.16            +$102.96 
Jun 15       -$ 27.43            +$107.22 
 
* Based on Iowa State University's latest estimated cost of production. 
A positive number indicates a processing margin above the cost of production of the animals. 
 
Beef-O-Meter 
This report compares the USDA's latest beef carcass composite 
values as a percentage of their respective year-ago prices. 
 
                                  Beef 
          For Today              Choice  143.2 
      (Percent of Year-Ago)      Select  134.7 
 
USDA Boxed Beef, Pork Reports 

Wholesale choice-grade beef prices Thursday fell $2.92 per hundred pounds, to $326.25, according to the USDA. Select-grade prices fell $2.72 per hundred pounds, to $287.24. The total load count was 118. Wholesale pork prices rose $4.45, to $123.41 a hundred pounds, based on Omaha, Neb., price quotes.

 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 17, 2021 17:33 ET (21:33 GMT)

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