Archer Daniels in hot water over FCPA investigation

May 08, 2013

ADM reserves $25M to resolve violating foreign bribery laws

Archer Daniels Midland Co. (ADM) told investors that it has reserved $25 million to deal with a Foreign Corrupt Practices Act investigation tied to its grain and feed exports.

ADM is a U.S.-based agribusiness conglomerate, which is the largest corn processor in the world, confirmed that they’ve been in discussions with the U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission over pending criminal foreign payments made by the company and its affiliates. According to the company’s filings, the issue took place in 2008. The company said that a settlement deal will likely be reached sometime this year.

The company told its investors that they would be establishing a provision of $25 million, $0.04 per share to take care of the costs associated with future assessments related to the case. ADM has said that the payments may have violated foreign laws. The company has hired an independent auditor to assist with the investigation, which may result in terminating several employees over the issue.

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.