Tyson Foods Inc. has agreed to sell sow buying stations in Sioux City, Story City and eight other locations to win government approval of the company’s $8.5 billion takeover of Hillshire Brands Co.

The Justice Department’s anti-trust division, which has been reviewing the blockbuster deal for weeks, announced a settlement that requires Tyson to first detach its Heinold Hog Markets operations.

State attorneys general in the major hog-buying states of Iowa, Illinois and Missouri joined in the settlement, which is subject to court approval. Under the proposed settlement filed last week in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Tyson must divest Heinold in its entirety to a buyer approved by the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division.

"Our concern was that this buyout would...