The board of dorectors of Charoen Pokphand Foods Public Company Limited (CPF) has approved an investment by its wholly-owned subsidiary CP Merchandising Co Ltd (CPM) to acquire up to 20 per cent of the total issued shares in Tesco Asia Group - a leading retailer under Tesco Lotus brand in Thailand and Malaysia, with CPM’s investment in the holding company setting up a Tesco Asia Group's investment transaction worth approximately US$1,500 million or Bt47.99 billion.