Mitsui & Co., Ltd ("Mitsui", Head Office: Tokyo, President and CEO: Tatsuo Yasunaga) has entered into an agreement with Zalar Holding S.A. ("Zalar"), an operator of grain, feed, and broiler integration businesses in Morocco and Senegal, to acquire newly issued shares through third party allotment. In addition to the approximate JPY 3 billion acquisition price of the shares, the formation of a strategic business alliance was also agreed to. Mitsui & Co. is contributing to food supply in the region by supporting the growth of Zalar, which operates projects in Morocco and West Africa, where population expansion and economic growth is expected to drive growth in demand for animal protein.

Since its establishment in 1974, Zalar has continued to grow as leading vertically integrated operator handling grain imports, feed production, broiler, and meat processing. Emerging countries in the region are expected to see significant growth in demand for animal protein, and poultry protein is projected to capture most this growth as there are no religious constraints on the consumption of chicken, and it offers optimal feed efficiency in its conversion to animal protein. Out of the whole of Africa, Morocco is currently experiencing the most prominent economic growth, and per capita consumption of chicken is still about half that of its peer countries despite a similar food culture, and significantly less than that of developed countries. This leaves room for demand expansion in the future.

Over a period of many years, the Mitsui Group has been developing grain, feed, and broiler integration businesses centered on the Japan and Asian markets. Through this capital participation, we aim to work in collaboration with Zalar and utilize our accumulated business expertise and knowledge to construct a supply system in line with the expanding demand for animal proteins and continue promoting business expansion in Morocco and West Africa.