Viterra Limited, through a wholly owned subsidiary, announced Oct. 3 that effective immediately it had closed its stock purchase agreement to acquire the grain and ingredients business of Gavilon Agriculture Investment Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Marubeni America Corporation. The purchase price for the acquisition was $1.125 billion, plus working capital, and is subject to certain price adjustments.
Viterra was formed in 1981 when metals and minerals trader Marc Rich bought a Dutch grain trading company, Granaria. The new company was named Glencore after a management buyout of Rich in 1993. It moved into supply chain management in 1996 when it bought an Argentine oilseed crushing facility. It bought grain company Viterra in 2012 and rebranded the global business as Viterra in 2020. It now operates facilities in Ukraine, the world’s largest oilseed crusher in Argentina and sugar mills in Brazil.
Gavilon, headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, originates, stores and distributes grains and oilseeds, as well as feed and food ingredients to domestic and global markets. Gavilon’s assets are in major growing areas across the United States, with access to major railroads, rivers and ports.
“Gavilon’s business has all the key attributes that support our long-term strategic plan and allows us to provide additional value to our customers at origination and destination,” said David Mattiske, CEO of Viterra Limited. “This acquisition further strengthens our global network by providing us with a material presence in every major exporting region and makes us one of the largest origination businesses in our industry.”
Mattiske added, “It gives me great pleasure to welcome Gavilon’s employees to the Viterra team. I look forward to a smooth integration as we work together to generate further opportunities for our employees and customers, while creating added value for our shareholders and investors.”
Effective immediately, Viterra will integrate Gavilon into its global network and in early 2023 will implement the Viterra brand across the business.
