Smithfield Foods, owned by Chinese company WH Group, has announced the acquisition of the iconic Nathan’s Famous hot dog brand for $450 million. The deal brings a symbol of American culinary history under foreign ownership. Nathan’s, founded in 1916, is known for its Coney Island roots and annual hot dog eating contest.
Nathan’s Famous, the beloved American hot dog chain, has been sold to Smithfield Foods in a deal valued at $450 million, as announced on Thursday. Smithfield, a Virginia-based meat producer, was acquired in 2013 by China’s Shuanghui Group, which later rebranded as WH Group.
The acquisition includes Nathan’s original location in Coney Island, Brooklyn, where Polish immigrant Nathan Handwerker opened his stand in 1916, four years after arriving in the United States. Handwerker built the business by offering affordable hot dogs, eventually turning it into a global brand synonymous with baseball games, barbecues, and the Fourth of July. In 2017, Major League Baseball designated Nathan’s as its official hot dog.
WH Group, a major player in the global meat industry, has a history of U.S. investments, including farmland holdings. At its peak, it owned about 150,000 acres across 29 states, though it reduced to around 85,000 acres following U.S. policy changes under the Trump administration aimed at restricting foreign agricultural purchases.
The sale has sparked discussion about foreign ownership of American icons, drawing parallels to past deals like the Belgian acquisition of Anheuser-Busch. Nathan’s has long been celebrated in American culture, from E.B. White’s wartime essay likening democracy to 'the mustard on the hot dog' to references in television shows like 'The West Wing.' The brand’s annual hot dog eating contest, famously won by Joey Chestnut in 2007, remains a highlight of Independence Day celebrations at the Coney Island site.
