It is reassuring to hear Chinese interests will never be able to own more than 50 per cent of Silver Fern Farms, John Woodhead says.
Mr Woodhead, who is the secretary of the Wanganui branch of the NZ Meat Workers' Union, and other union officials were given an overview by Silver Fern Farms (SFF), New Zealand's biggest farmer-owned meat processing co-operative, of what is proposed.
The company has a lot of debt and is under pressure from its banks to pay it back.
Shanghai Maling Aquarius, a part-owner of Chinese state-owned enterprise Bright Food, wants to invest $261 million by buying into Silver Fern Farms. The Silver Fern board has approved the idea. A final 'yes' or 'no' decision will be made by its shareholders at a meeting in Dunedin on October 16 .
Union officials were told strict provisions would prevent the Chinese buyer ever having more than half of the company and gaining a controlling interest. Its board would be half Shanghai Maling Aquarius and half Silver Fern Farms.