Global Egg Industry Giants Revealed: Top 10 Companies Control Billions of Birds

A new ranking shows the world's largest egg producers manage over 1.1 billion laying hens across five continents. These companies are expanding internationally through major acquisitions, with some deals worth over $1 billion as global egg demand continues rising.

The planet’s largest egg-producing companies manage more than 1.1 billion laying hens spread across five continents, according to a new industry analysis.

These major egg businesses are evolving beyond their traditional regional focus. Many companies are now pursuing international expansion strategies, making strategic purchases not just to strengthen their domestic market presence but to establish operations in foreign countries.

Luxembourg-based Global Eggs exemplifies this global approach. Though most of its production occurs in Brazil, the company has purchased egg operations in the United States, Spain and Uruguay. This international expansion has propelled Global Eggs to the second spot in the worldwide rankings, jumping from 11th place when it was primarily a Brazilian operation.

Egg consumption continues to grow worldwide, and despite being considered an affordable, basic food item, the sheer volume of daily global sales makes the egg industry extremely lucrative.

The industry extends far beyond simple volume production. These leading companies offer diverse premium products including organic, cage-free, enriched and carbon-neutral options. As economic conditions improve and consumer standards rise, these specialty product lines become increasingly important to company revenues.

1. Cal-Maine Foods

The United States-based Cal-Maine Foods leads globally with 506 million laying birds. The company operates comprehensive facilities including breeder flocks, chick hatching operations, pullet raising farms, and layer management. Additionally, Cal-Maine produces animal feed and handles egg processing, packaging and distribution.

The company offers both brown and white eggs in caged and cage-free varieties, plus free-range, organic and nutritionally enhanced product lines. Cal-Maine also manufactures liquid and bulk egg products.

In February 2025, Cal-Maine purchased Deal-Rite Feeds, a North Carolina-based feed manufacturer specializing in milling, storage, distribution and retail operations to support regional shell egg production.

This acquisition followed the mid-2024 purchase of nearly all ISE America Inc. assets for approximately $110 million. This deal added commercial shell egg production capacity for roughly 4.7 million birds, including 1 million cage-free birds and 1.2 million pullets, plus processing facilities, feed mills, about 4,000 acres of land, inventories and an egg products breaking facility.

Earlier in 2024, the company acquired a Tyson Foods broiler processing plant in Dexter, Missouri, planning to convert it into an egg-grading facility, hatchery and feed mill.

2. Global Eggs

Global Eggs operates 430 million laying birds through its Luxembourg-based holding company structure, controlling leading egg companies in Brazil, Spain and the United States. The operation spans both table and hatching egg markets, exporting to more than 20 countries through 93 farms.

In Brazil, the company owns Granja Faria, which produces table eggs and maintains 4.5 million breeders with a 40% share of the country’s fertile egg export market. Granja Faria ranks as Brazil’s second-largest egg producer.

Hillandale Farms joined Global Eggs in May 2025 through a $1.1 billion acquisition. This purchase of North America’s fifth-largest egg producer added 18.5 million layers to the conglomerate, which Global Eggs called essential to its worldwide strategy.

In Spain, Global Eggs controls Hevo Group, the country’s second-largest egg producer operating 20 farms. The company expanded its Spanish holdings in 2025 by purchasing El Granjero, which generates annual revenues of 70 million euros ($82.3 million), and Legaria, which owns 1 million layers.

In December 2025, reports indicated the company was negotiating to acquire Uruguay’s largest egg producer, Prodhin, which operates approximately 600,000 laying birds.

3. Proteina Animal (PROAN)

Mexico’s PROAN manages 41 million layers producing both brown and white eggs. The company operates in table and liquid egg production, along with pork, beef and packaged meat production, frozen bread, ice cream and pet food. PROAN also maintains a food service division.

4. Rose Acre Farms

Rose Acre Farms operates 25.5 million laying birds across 15 facilities in seven U.S. states, producing conventional, cage-free, nutritionally enhanced, liquid and dried eggs.

In early 2025, the company announced plans to renovate a recently purchased 3.64-acre property in Bullhead City, Arizona, into a liquid egg processing facility. This investment would increase Rose Acre’s breaking and processing capacity by approximately 2 million eggs daily and boost liquid egg products capacity by 200,000 pounds per day.

During 2024, the company announced several investments, including constructing a fourth pullet house at its Seymour, Indiana facility, plus building a $1.3 million egg processing plant and cage-free houses at its Jen Acres Farm in Vernon, Indiana.

5. Daybreak Foods Inc.

Wisconsin-based Daybreak Foods Inc. manages 23.3 million laying birds, producing conventional, cage-free and organic eggs plus liquid egg products.

The company has completed multiple acquisitions recently, including the 2025 purchase of Missouri’s S&R Egg Farm, which added 1 million hens to its flock. In 2023, Daybreak acquired Michigan-based Hen Haven LLC and Schipper Eggs LLC.

6. Shanxi Jinlong Breeding Co.

China’s Shanxi Jinlong Breeding Co. ranks sixth with 20.8 million layers. Based in Yungcheng, Shanxi, the company also operates broiler production facilities. Shanxi has made substantial investments recently, including constructing a layer house capable of housing 880,000 birds on a new 1-million-bird layer farm.

7. CP Group

Thailand’s Charoen Pokphand Group Co. Ltd, known as CP Group, maintains 20.7 million laying hens in seventh position. CP Group serves as the major shareholder of Charoen Pokphand Foods (CP Foods), an extensive agrifood network operating mainly in Asia and Europe from Thailand headquarters.

The company produces table eggs and egg products while gradually converting its egg production to cage-free systems. Beyond exporting to over 50 countries, CP operates facilities worldwide, with particularly strong overseas egg operations in Vietnam.

CP Group has committed to making all its global plastic packaging reusable, recyclable, upcyclable or compostable by 2030. Ethisphere, a nonprofit promoting ethical business practices, has recognized the company multiple times.

8. Beijing Deqingyuan Agricultural Technology Co. Ltd.

China’s Beijing Deqingyuan Agricultural Technology Co. Ltd. follows closely with 20.6 million laying hens. The company specializes in poultry breeding and egg production and processing.

This vertically integrated business claims to be China’s only egg producer maintaining grandparent stock, parent stock and commercial layers. In 2008, it became the first Asian company to receive the Crystal Egg Award from the World Egg Organisation for corporate social responsibility commitment. The company pioneered branded eggs and egg standards in China.

9. Granja Mantiqueira

Brazil’s Granja Mantiqueira, founded in 1987, operates 17.6 million laying hens and has been 50% owned by Brazilian multinational JBS, the world’s largest meat producer, since early 2025.

Mantiqueira produces 4 billion eggs annually across six states and claims to be Brazil’s largest cage-free egg producer. The company employs over 3,400 people and operates in eggs, egg products, agriculture, fertilizers and storage.

In late 2025, Mantiqueira announced U.S. market entry through newly formed subsidiary Mantiqueira USA, a joint venture with JBS. Through this partnership, it purchased Hickman’s Egg Ranch, which operates approximately 6 million laying hens in the Mountain and West Coast regions of the United States.

10. Arab Company for Livestock Development (ACOLID)

Saudi Arabia’s Arab Company for Livestock Development (ACOLID) holds tenth position with 17.1 million laying hens. ACOLID is owned by 11 Arab states and an investment firm to support Arab Food Security Programs strategy.

The company controls 39 operating units, including multiple poultry subsidiaries involved in breeding, table and hatching egg production, and broiler meat. Despite ongoing economic and political challenges in many operating countries, ACOLID reports meeting output targets and continued growth.