NEW YORK – WH Group Ltd., the parent company of Smithfield Foods Inc., was reported to be talking with banks about taking the pork producer public in the United States again, according to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal.

“This topic comes up occasionally,” a Smithfield spokesperson said to MEAT+POULTRY in an email. “It’s something we regularly evaluate but there is no definitive plan or timetable.”

In 2013, WH Group, acquired Smithfield Foods for $4.7 billion, one of the largest takeovers of an American business by a Chinese company at the time. Smithfield was eventually delisted from the New York Stock Exchange.

Over time, the company raised more than $2.3 billion and went public in the Hong Kong market in 2014.

In recent years, shares for WH Group traded around record lows due to several factors, including the African swine fever outbreak in China. The world pork producer looks to move on to a US listing to improve its valuation.

Another major meat company recently announced a proposal at a US listing. JBS S.A. shared its proposal during July about making shares available on the São Paulo Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange.