European authority approves Bunge oilseed acquisitions

Bunge of the Netherlands’ acquisition of two Cargill oilseed processing factories in the European Union has been approved by the European Commission.

xrayphoto | Bigstock.com
xrayphoto | Bigstock.com

Bunge of the Netherlands’ acquisition of two Cargill oilseed processing factories in the European Union has been approved by the European Commission (EC).

Considering the deal under European Union merger regulations, the EC considered that the presence of other soybean meal and oil suppliers in the market would ensure that the proposed acquisition will raise no concerns over competition. These end products are used mainly for animal feeds, food and biodiesel.

The decision means that Bunge will take over an oilseed crushing and seed oil refining facility in Amsterdam, and an oilseed crushing and storage facilities in Brest, France.

Bunge is a global agribusiness and food company, notably active in the production of vegetable oils and oilseed meals. Bunge and the Cargill assets sell soybean meal and soybean oil primarily to animal feed, food industry and biodiesel customers. The Commission concluded that the proposed acquisition would raise no competition concerns because of the presence of several alternative competitors in the soybean meal and oil markets, including importers.

In August 2016, Cargill and Bunge announced that approval was being sought from Dutch and French authorities following the two companies’ agreement for Cargill to sell the two soybean and rapeseed crushing plants to Bunge. Together, the plants’ annual processing capacity is around 2 million metric tons, and employs around 170 workers, which would transfer to Bunge.

Cargill said it intended to retain its other crushing facilities in Europe, which are located in Barcelona, Spain, and Liverpool, U.K.

Page 1 of 51
Next Page