La Coop fédérée and Cargill have reached an agreement on the sale of Cargill’s grain and crop inputs retail assets in Ontario, including its ownership in South West Ag Partners, to La Coop fédérée.
Terms of the pending sale are not being disclosed. Finalization of the transaction will take place upon the completion of definitive agreements and any required regulatory reviews, which are expected the second quarter of the calendar year.
The sale comprises 13 grain assets and crop inputs retail assets, and Cargill’s 50 percent share of South West Ag Partners, a joint venture which includes 9 grain and crop inputs facilities in Ontario. The sale does not include the Cargill export terminal in Sarnia, or the AgResource crop inputs wholesale business. All other Cargill grain and crop inputs assets in Canada and all other Cargill businesses in Ontario or throughout Canada are not included in the sale agreement.
La Coop fédérée is backed by National Bank of Canada, Fonds de solidarité FTQ, Fondaction CSN, and Capital régional et coopératif Desjardins (CRCD), having raised $255 million in preferred shares from those backers.
photo credit: Pezibear via pixabay
News Release
La Coop fédérée purchases the grain and crop production input assets of Ontario-based Cargill through its agricultural division
Montreal, March 22, 2018 – La Coop fédérée, through its agricultural division, announced today that it had signed an agreement to purchase the grain and crop production input assets of Ontario firm Cargill, including its South West Ag Partner property.
The sale includes the assets of 13 grain and crop production input establishments and 50% of the shares held by Cargill in South West Ag Partners, a cooperative that includes 9 grain and crop production input establishments in Ontario.
Adding these establishments will complement the existing operations of La Coop fédérée’s agricultural division in Ontario, which already include four fertilizer terminals, 16 local retail cooperatives and a grain trade group.
The conditions of the sale have not been disclosed. The transaction will be finalized when the definitive agreements and required regulatory examinations are completed, which is scheduled for the second quarter of the calendar year.
“This transaction is part of La Coop fédérée and its agricultural division’s sustainable growth plan, which includes the Agromart retail network and our grain trade businesses. This agreement will help us continue with our major expansion program elsewhere in Canada and remain competitive on grain and agricultural input markets,” explained Gaétan Desroches, Chief Executive Officer of La Coop fédérée.
“We are confident that current clients will greatly benefit from our experience and expertise. They can take advantage of a crop input service offering, grain handling, marketing in the region and access to a vast network of agricultural retailers that stretches well beyond Ontario thanks to more than a hundred affiliated establishments across Canada,” added Sébastien Léveillé, Executive Agricultural Vice-President of La Coop fédérée.
Establishments included in the sale to the agricultural division of La Coop fédérée:
Cargill grains: Melbourne; Princeton; Shetland; Staples; Talbotville
Cargill agricultural input: Alliston; Clinton; Courtland; Harriston; Harrow; Melbourne; Mount Albert; Princeton; Shetland; Talbotville; Tilbury; Waterford
South West Ag Partners grains: Becher; Grande Pointe; Palmerston Grain; Rutherford; Tupperville; Wallaceburg; all grain satellite relationships
South West Ag Partners agricultural input: Becher; Dover; Eberts; Ridgetown; Rutherford
The sale does not include the Sarnia export terminal and the AgResource agricultural input wholesale sales operation. All of Cargill’s other grain and agricultural input assets in Canada and all of Cargill’s other businesses in Ontario and elsewhere in Canada are not included in the sales agreement.
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Source:
La Coop fédérée: Ben Marc Diendéré, Senior Vice-President Communications, Public Affairs and Brand Image
Media contact:
Nicolas Poirier-Quesnel, La Coop fédérée, 514-858-2020 nicolas.poirier-quesnel@lacoop.coop
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About La Coop fédérée
Founded in 1922, La Coop fédérée is the largest agri-food organization in Quebec and the 24th largest in the world. It represents more than 60,000 members grouped into close to 70 cooperatives in multiple Canadian provinces. La Coop fédérée employs more than 13,000 employees and has combined sales of $9.2 billion. Its activities are divided into three divisions: Olymel S.E.C (under the Olymel, Flamingo and Lafleur banners, the Agricultural Division (under the La Coop, Élite, Agrocentre, Agrico and Agromart banners) and the BMR Group (under the BMR, Unimat and Potvin & Bouchard banners). For more information, please visit: www.lacoop.coop. Twitter account: @LaCoop_federee.