China's Bright Food Group Co is negotiating to raise the stake it plans to buy in Israel's largest food company, Tnuva, to over 70 percent, and the deal is expected to be concluded in April, a company executive said.

"The exact amount of the stake and the value of the deal would be revealed after the settlement contract is signed," Bright Food spokesman Pan Jianjun said by telephone yesterday.

Bright Food originally planned to buy a 56 percent stake in the Israeli company from Apax Partners, a London-based private equity firm, and the transaction was to have been completed last month.

Bright Food and the relevant parties are still discussing the Chinese company's acquisition of a bigger stake in Tnuva, delaying the conclusion of the deal, Pan said.

Israel's Haaretz newspaper had reported that the deal could be worth 6.1 billion new Israeli shekels (US$1.29 billion).

Tnuva's products, such as frozen pastries and various kinds of cheese, are sold in the Middle East, Europe and the United States, according to its official website.

Bright Food is eager to acquire overseas food companies to gain access to new product categories and technology in dairy production.

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