In May, Flour Mills of Nigeria (FMN), the nation’s leading food and agricultural company, completed its acquisition of a 76.75% stake in Honeywell Flour Mills PLC (HFMP), an affiliate of Honeywell Group Ltd., following regulatory approval.

On Nov. 22, 2022, FMN signed an agreement to acquire a 71.69% share in its milling rival at an estimated cost of NGN80 billion (US $193.7 million). Additionally, FMN reached an agreement with First Bank of Nigeria Ltd. to acquire the bank’s 5.06% equity in HFMP.

FMN operates 17 modern manufacturing facilities in 12 states with production capabilities across grain milling, edible oil and sugar refining, agricultural inputs, and animal nutrition and protein segments.

With the combination of FMN and HFMP flour milling enterprises, FMN will remain one of the largest and most diverse food and agro-allied groups in Africa.

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Milling titans to merge in Nigeria

Flour Mills of Nigeria, Honeywell complete merger

Viterra Ltd. announced Oct. 3 that it had closed its stock purchase agreement to acquire the grain and ingredients business of Gavilon Agriculture Investment Inc. (Gavilon), a wholly owned US-based subsidiary of Marubeni America Corp., for $1.125 billion, plus working capital and subject to certain price adjustments.

Gavilon, headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, US, 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.

Viterra’s intent to acquire Gavilon’s assets was first announced in January 2022. Viterra has more than 17,500 employees operating in 37 countries, and its network of storage, processing and transport assets connects producers and consumers to supply sustainable, traceable and quality-controlled agricultural products.

According to Marubeni, the transaction did not include eight grain elevators held and operated by Gavilon in the northern United States. Those elevators were transferred to Columbia Grain International, a subsidiary of Marubeni.

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Viterra to acquire Gavilon for $1.13 billion

Viterra completes Gavilon purchase

While uncertainty remains over the likelihood of Mexico following through on a ban of genetically modified corn, agriculture officials and trade groups are continuing discussions with Mexican leaders to show the negative impacts of such a ban.

The decree issued on Jan. 1, 2021, by Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador calls for a phase-out of glyphosate and GM corn by January 2024. Mexico imports about 17 million tonnes of GM corn per year, and the United States is the top supplier. More than 90% of all corn planted in the United States is genetically modified.

The United States on Nov. 28 threatened legal action against Mexico if it proceeded with its plan after US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack met with Lopez Obrador to continue discussions.

“We must find a way forward soon, and I emphasized in no uncertain terms that – absent acceptable resolution of this issue – the US government would be forced to consider all options, including taking formal steps to enforce our legal rights under the USMCA (US-Mexico-Canada-Agreement),” Vilsack said.

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Uncertainty surrounds Mexico’s decree banning GM corn

US threatens lawsuit if Mexico bans GM corn imports

Argentina-based biotech company Bioceres Crop Solutions, the maker of HB4 wheat, is promoting a genetically modified, drought-resistant variety that during the past two years has gained acceptance and regulatory approval in several South American countries and also has cleared preliminary regulatory hurdles in Australia and the United States.

Frederico Trucco, chief executive officer of Bioceres, is optimistic that HB4 is on a trajectory for commercialization in several key wheat-producing countries in the coming years. But the payoff is rarely quick for biotechnology companies, which is something he is always reminding investors. After all, it’s taken nearly 20 years since the introduction of HB4 technology in 2003 to develop wheat varieties and start to gain regulatory approvals that may pave the way for commercialization.

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Bioceres making push with GM wheat

From the editor: Thinking outside the box on climate change

Brian Sikes will become president and chief executive officer of Cargill on Jan. 1, 2023. He will replace Dave MacLennan, who will become executive chair of the board.

Sikes has been with the company for 31 years and currently serves as Cargill’s chief operating officer. He has held leadership roles in the United States, Canada and Europe, and served as the head of the company’s talent center of expertise. Sikes will be the 10th CEO in Cargill’s 157-year history.

Cargill, a privately held company and one of the four international agribusiness giants with ADM, Bunge Ltd. and Louis Dreyfus Co., reported global revenue of $165 billion in fiscal year 2022 ended May 31.

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Cargill promotes new president, CEO

Cargill revenues rise 23% in fiscal 2022

Climate change has been a disruptor in agriculture, with innovation a necessity to battle drought, altered growing seasons and river transportation systems worldwide.

Water levels on the Mississippi River, the United States’ main artery for grain exports, receded to record lows in 2022, limiting the amount of grain that was transported down the river. 

Drought also has dropped global grain ending stocks to their lowest level in nearly a decade due to prolonged dry spells in major grain-producing regions. Argentina’s wheat crop has been slashed to potentially its lowest output since 2014-15, and India’s intense summer heatwave cut yields from what otherwise was expected to be a seventh consecutive bumper crop. 

Efforts have been made through biotechnology and gene research to develop grains that will better resist drought and grow in more challenging conditions.

Major agribusinesses such as ADM, Bunge Ltd., Cargill and Louis Dreyfus Co. have joined forces with partners throughout the food and feed value chain to develop environmentally sustainable agricultural practices.

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From the editor: Thinking outside the box on climate change

Cereals & Grains gathering showcases ag innovation

Ag companies make sustainability pledge

Oleksiy Vadatursky, the longtime owner and chief executive officer of Nibulon, was killed on July 31 in his home during a bombing of Mykolaiv, a city in the country’s southern region, by Russian forces. His wife, Raisa Vadatursky, who was with him in their home, also was killed.

Vadatursky, 74, founded Nibulon in 1991 and oversaw the company’s growth into a major player in the international grain industry. Nibulon specializes in the production and export of wheat, barley and corn. It is the only Ukrainian agricultural company with its own fleet and shipyard.

Vadatursky, who also was vice president of the Ukrainian Grain Association, was recognized as a Hero of Ukraine, the highest honor a citizen of the country can receive.

Nibulon announced on Oct. 17 that Andriy Vadatursky had succeeded his late father as CEO.

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Vadatursky replaces late father as CEO of Nibulon

Ukraine official says Nibulon CEO was a specific target

Russian bombing kills Nibulon CEO

Grain and other commodity prices soared in 2022 to generational highs when Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24 and weather and climate events created challenging growing conditions across the globe. 

The blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports by Russia, damage to Ukraine’s infrastructure and economic sanctions on Russia created an immediate crisis of supply and prices for wheat, corn, sunflower oil and fertilizer inputs.

The United Nations warned throughout the spring and summer that less-developed nations, particularly in Africa where dependence on wheat from the Black Sea is acute, were particularly vulnerable to food shortages.

The reopening of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports helped alleviate the short-term worries for 2022, but the longer-term impact of the war and climate on production and global stocks remain a concern for 2023 even as they spur innovation in sustainability and food security.

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Global Grains Conference focuses on Black Sea woes

A conversation with market analyst Dan Basse

When Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, it immediately blockaded all of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports. Ukraine exports 90% of its agricultural goods — including wheat, corn and sunflower oil — through these ports.

As the United Nations warned of a global hunger crisis due to the war, a compromise was reached that allowed three ports to reopen with security guarantees from Turkey. In Late July, the Black Sea Grain Initiative, brokered by the UN and Turkey and signed separately by Ukraine and Russia, allowed goods to depart from Ukraine again.

The deal was extended in late November for another 120 days. While Ukraine remains far behind its 2021 export totals, the renewed flow of agricultural goods has stabilized markets. Vulnerable nations also have continued to diversify their grain sources in anticipation of continued disruptions.

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Russia, Ukraine sign deal to free up grain exports

Black Sea Grain Initiative gets go-ahead to continue

Russia’s invasion of neighboring Ukraine on Feb. 24 is World Grain’s top story for 2022.

Russia and Ukraine on average, supply 30% of the world’s wheat exports. Ukraine is also a major corn and sunflower oil supplier, while Russia provides fertilizer inputs to feed crop production globally.

Amid the blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports and war damage to its grain handling and storage infrastructure, the world braced for commodity and food price spikes and shortages. Less-developed nations faced food shortages, and the United Nations warned of a global hunger crisis. As the year closes, prices for wheat, corn, sunflower oil and fertilizer have fallen and stabilized, but food costs remain high.

Under the constant cloud of war, Ukraine’s farmers were able to plant grain crops for 2023. It remains to be seen how much grain can be successfully produced, stored and exported as the conflict nears the one-year anniversary of its start with no clear sign the end is near.

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Russian invasion adds volatility to unstable markets

From the editor: Grain’s central role in Russia-Ukraine war

FAC examines impact of war on global food security