The minimum bid has been set at RMB1 billion (US$125 million), according to information provided by China Beijing Equity Exchange, which is organising the sale.

If successul, the acquisition would be the second largest foreign acquisition of a Chinese company this year.

The Luohe government-owned company gained net profits of about about RMB$107 million (US$13.3 million) for 2005 and plans to finalise a sale this month.

Goldman Sachs and CCMP Capital Asia, previously known as JPMorgan Partners Asia, are the two reported bidders.

The Shuanghui group, owns 36 percent of Shanghai-listed Henan Shuanghui Investment & Development Co, a leading Chinese meat processor with sales of more than RMB20 billion (US$249 million) in 2005.

The high price reflects a growing interest in China's food industry. Foreign investors hope to cash in on China's fast-growing consumer purchasing power as the raw meat and processed-meat production in China have been growing at an annual average of about 6 percent for the past five years, according to China's National Bureau of Statistics.