Cargill, the world’s largest privately owned food and agriculture company, has sold its two remaining beef feedlots to US ethanol producer Green Plains.

The feedlots, which are situated in Kansas and Colorado, have a total capacity of 155,000 cattle.

The deal, worth a reported $36.7m, ends Cargill’s involvement in rearing livestock for slaughter after the company had previously announced the sale of two feedlots in Bovina and Texas in July 2016.

The US beef and grain giant said that selling its two remaining feedlots would allow the company to focus further on its plant-based protein operations by reinvesting working capital away from cattle-feeding operations.

Over the past two years, Cargill has announced $560m in acquisitions and capital investments to grow its North American protein business.

Cargill employs over 140,000 people in 66 countries and is responsible for 25% of all US grain exports. It controls more than 70% of the US beef market.