Viterra completes major expansion into the U.S. with acquisition of Gavilon

by

Viterra has officially completed its acquisition of Nebraska-based Gavilon, giving the grain company with roots in Canada a much larger footprint in the U.S.

As part of the stock purchase agreement, which was announced in January and closed on October 3, Viterra is paying Japan-based Marubeni US$1.125 billion, plus working capital and other adjustments, for Gavilon and its grain and ingredients business.

“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.”

According to Gavilon’s website, it operates over 90 facilities across the central U.S., from North Dakota to Texas and Michigan to Idaho.

Viterra says it will immediately begin integrating Gavilon into its global network. Gavilon will be rebranded under the Viterra name in early 2023.

Company histories

Gavilon’s history dates back to 1874 when the Peavey Company — the same brand that later became Peavey Mart in Canada — built its first grain facility in Sioux City, Iowa. It was acquired by ConAgra in 1982, and then by Marubeni in 2013.

Viterra – one of the largest grain handlers in Canada – was originally formed when the Saskatchewan Wheat Pool acquired Agricore United (which evolved out of the Alberta Wheat Pool, Manitoba Pool, and United Grain Growers) in 2007. Glencore, the Switzerland-based commodity trading and mining giant, then acquired Viterra in 2012. In 2016, Glencore sold a 40 per cent stake in Viterra to the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and another 9.99 per cent stake to the British Columbia Investment Management Corporation (BCIMC).

Glencore rebranded its global agriculture business, which includes more than 17,000 employees in 37 countries, under the Viterra name in 2020.

Wake up with RealAgriculture

Subscribe to our daily newsletters to keep you up-to-date with our latest coverage every morning.

Wake up with RealAgriculture

Please register to read and comment.

 

Register for a RealAgriculture account to manage your Shortcut menu instead of the default.

Register