A deal to buy a major Suffolk pig company has been approved by the Competition & Markets Authority.

Easey Pigs, based at Hoxne, near Eye, was acquired in September by international food firm Tulip, which is part of Danish Crown, for an undisclosed sum.

The Danish Crown group, a co-operative owned by 7,600 Danish member farmers, is the world’s largest pork exporter and Europe’s largest pork processor.

Easey Pigs, based at Hoxne, near Eye, grew to become a national business with a £60m to £70m turnover and employing 70 staff.

The CMA investigated whether Tulip, in using the pigs bred and farmed by Easey to satisfy its own customer demand, would reduce supply to Tulip’s downstream rivals.

However, the body ruled that the deal does not give rise to vertical competition concerns because “Tulip’s rivals in the supply of fresh and processed pork will have access to sufficient alternative supplies of outdoor bred pigs to continue to be able to provide a competitive constraint on Tulip post-Merger.”