Tyson Foods Inc., No. 1 in the pecking order of the nation’s poultry firms, last week was able to pluck a longtime rival down on its luck.
Hudson Foods Inc., the country’s fourth-largest poultry processor, agreed to the $642 million takeover by its cross-state Arkansas competitor in less than ideal circumstances. Tyson, based in Springdale, had been after Rogers-based Hudson for a dozen years.
Last month, Hudson became better known as the company that recalled 25 million pounds of hamburger after an outbreak of bacterial contamination. Some 16 people had illness linked to Hudson and five were hospitalized. Big customers stopped buying from Hudson, which then sold the Nebraska plant where the hamburger was produced to IBP Inc.
Tyson leads the poultry industry with a 22 percent share, and Hudson has a 5 percent share. Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission officials said it was too early to determine if any antitrust investigations were warranted.
