New Brunswick seafood giant Cooke Inc. acquires Tassal Group of Australia for $1.5B

The Canadian Press

Cooke Aquaculture farmers secure nets at a sea site Newfoundland in this undated handout photo. In tiny Black's Harbour, N.B., sandwiched between an Irving gas station and the local Freshmart, is a small, two-storey brick building that is head office for the world's largest independent seafood company. Cooke Aquaculture Inc. has billions of dollars in annual revenue, shipping one billion pounds of fresh seafood annually to 67 countries. , THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO - Cooke

New Brunswick seafood giant Cooke Inc. says it has completed a C$1.5-billion acquisition of Australian seafood producer Tassal Group Ltd.

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The parent company of Cooke Aquaculture Inc. says the deal is the largest-ever purchase for the family-owned company since its launch in 1985.

Cooke says it acquired all outstanding shares of Tassal for A$5.23 per share following approval by Tassal shareholders and an Australian court.

Cooke CEO Glenn Cooke says the company is thrilled to join the Tasmanian aquaculture industry and welcomed Tassal’s 1,700 employees.

Tassal harvests 40,000 tonnes of Atlantic salmon annually in five marine farming zones with four land-based freshwater hatcheries and four processing facilities from southern Tasmania to the north of Queensland.

It also farms 5,500 tonnes of Australian black tiger prawns from two hatcheries, three pond farms and processing facilities.