Bunge has announced it will merge with Viterra as part of an agreement approved by the Boards of Directors of both companies. The merger will make Bunge one of the world’s largest grain companies.
Following the close of the transaction, the combined company will continue to operate using the Bunge name and will be led by Greg Heckman, Bunge’s Chief Executive Officer, and John Neppl, Bunge’s Chief Financial Officer. The company’s headquarters will remain in St. Louis, Missouri.
Bunge announced in Dec. 2022 that it was investing $550 million to build a soy protein concentrate facility next to the company’s existing soybean processing plant in Morristown in Shelby County, Indiana. The new facility is planned to open in mid-2025 and is expected to process an additional 4.5 million bushels of soybeans. In addition, Bunge also has locations across Indiana in Decatur, Rushville, Worthington, and Indianapolis.
“The combination of Bunge and Viterra significantly accelerates Bunge’s strategy, building on our fundamental purpose to connect farmers to consumers to deliver essential food, feed and fuel to the world,” said Greg Heckman, Bunge’s Chief Executive Officer. “Our highly complementary asset footprints will create a network that connects the world’s largest production regions to areas of fastest growing consumption, enhancing the geographical balance and adaptability of our global value chains and benefitting farmers and end-customers. With a diversified global mix of earnings across processing, handling and merchandising, and value-added products, we will increase the resiliency of our cash flow generation. We have great respect for the team at Viterra, which shares our commitment to excellence, and believe this combination will offer great opportunities for employees of both companies. Together, we will be positioned to increase our operational efficiency while innovating to address the pressing needs of food security, efficiency for end-customers, market access for farmers, and sustainable food, feed and renewable fuel production.”
The merger is expected to close in mid-2024, subject to satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including receipt of regulatory approvals and approval by Bunge shareholders.
