Jamaican Broilers Group (JBG) announced yesterday that it has purchased a new hatchery in the United States.

On April 5, the company said that through its recently incorporated subsidiary, International Poultry Breeders Hatcheries, Inc, it completed the acquisition of the hatchery assets of Welp Inc in Iowa, USA, on Wednesday, March 30, 2016.

Production of broiler and Novogen layer chicks commenced on March 31 from the facility.

“The addition of this hatchery to the US operations will serve as a distribution channel for layer chicks from the Novogen product line. This will strengthen and expand the group`s services to the poultry industry in the US and Canadian markets,” JBG said in its market notice issued via the Jamaica Stock Exchange.

The acquisition cost was not given.

However, earlier this year, after raising some J$6 billion in funding, the company had indicated that it was again in expansion mode. The company said then that approximately $1.5 billion out of new financing of $6.4 billion raised in a recent bond issue and syndicated loan is intended for expansion in Jamaica and the USA.

JBG’s United States operations before this included Wincorp International in Florida and International Poultry Breeders in Georgia and Arkansas.

JBG said in its annual report that it has started producing in new areas of the United States – resulting in the first fertile hatching egg marketing operation with access to production from three states.

The US operations provide US dollar earnings to the group, which had revenues of $26.7 billion during its last financial year.

For the third quarter ending January 2016, the hard- currency earnings of JBG’s US Operations contributed $798 million, compared to $632 million last year.

Group revenues during the quarter were $9.9 billion, compared to the $9.05 billion in the corresponding period. Net profit was $492.8 million, up 21 per cent on $404.76 earned in third quarter 2015.