Transport Canada reviewing Bunge’s proposed Viterra acquisition

Sep 28, 2023

Transport Canada has until June 2, 2024 to complete its assessment

By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com

Canada’s transport ministry will review Bunge’s proposed acquisition of Viterra.

Transport Minister Pablo Rodriguez announced the review of the US$8.2 billion deal on Sept. 26, highlighting that each company hold ownership in port terminals in Canada.

Bunge is involved with G3 while Viterra owns the Cascadia and Pacific Terminals at the Port of Vancouver, one in Thunder Bay, Ont., and one in Montreal.

“Healthy competition in the transportation sector is necessary to ensure fair pricing and access for users, especially Canadian farmers,” the minister said in a statement.

Under guidelines related to this part of federal transportation law, factors “may be considered to determine whether a proposed transaction raises issues with respect to the public interest as it relates to national transportation,” the Canada Transportation Act says.

This potential deal meets the criteria, the minister says.

“Given this transaction is of significant national interest in Canada’s transport sector and the broader supply chain, it will be reviewed under the mergers and acquisitions provisions of the Canada Transportation Act,” he said in the statement. “Goods must continue to move smoothly, and our supply chain must continue to grow stronger.”

The Transport Canada review will include reps from Canada’s ports and marine industry, stakeholders, other government departments and the public.

The review process can take up to 250 days, until June 2, 2024.

This is the second federal government review of the Bunge/Viterra deal.

In June, the Competition Bureau announced it would also review the agribusiness deal.

“The Bureau has a mandate to review mergers to determine whether they are likely to result in a substantial lessening or prevention of competition,” Jayme Albert, a spokesperson with the bureau, told the Canadian Press. “Should we determine that the proposed transaction is like to harm competition, we will take appropriate action.”

Farms.com has contacted Bunge for comment.

Video: The Investment Opportunities of Industrial Hemp

The fledgling U.S. hemp industry is decades behind countries like Canada, France and China, but according to impact investor and this week’s podcast guest, Pierre Berard, it could flourish into a $2.2 billion industry by 2030 and create thousands of jobs.

To reach its potential, what the hemp industry needs most right now, Berard said, is capital investment.

Last month, Berard published a report titled “Seeing the U.S. Industrial Hemp Opportunity — A Pioneering Venture for Investors and Corporations Driven by Environmental, Social and Financial Concerns” in which he lays out the case for investment.

It’s as if Berard, with this report, is waving a giant flag, trying to attract the eyes of investors, saying, “Look over here. Look at all this opportunity.”

Berard likens the burgeoning American hemp industry to a developing country.

“There is no capital. People don’t want to finance. This is too risky. And I was like, OK, this sounds like something for me,” he said.

As an impact investor who manages funds specializing in agro-processing companies, Berard now has his sights set on the U.S. hemp industry, which he believes has great economic value as well as social and environmental benefits.

He spent many years developing investment in the agriculture infrastructure of developing countries in Latin America and Africa, and said the hemp industry feels similar.

“It is very nascent and it is a very fragmented sector. You have pioneers and trailblazers inventing or reinventing the field after 80 years of prohibition,” he said. “So I feel very familiar with this context.”

On this week’s hemp podcast, Berard talks about the report and the opportunities available to investors in the feed, fiber and food sectors of the hemp industry.

Building an industry around an agricultural commodity takes time, he said. According to the report, “The soybean industry took about 50 years to become firmly established, from the first USDA imports in 1898 to the U.S. being the top worldwide producer in the 1950s.”

Berard has a plan to accelerate the growth of the hemp industry and sees a four-pillar approach to attract investment.

First, he said, the foundation of the industry is the relationship between farmers and processors at the local level.

Second, he said the industry needs what he calls a “federating body” that will represent it, foster markets and innovations, and reduce risk for its members and investors.

The third pillar is “collaboration with corporations that aim to secure or diversify their supply chains with sustainable products and enhance their ESG credentials. This will be key to funding the industry and creating markets,” he said.

The fourth pillar is investment. Lots of it. Over $1.6 billion over seven years. This money will come from government, corporations, individual investors, and philanthropic donors.

The 75-page report goes into detail about the hemp industry, its environmental and social impact, and the opportunities available to investors.

Read the report here: Seeing the U.S. Industrial Hemp Opportunity

Also on this episode, we check in with hemp and bison farmer Herb Grove from Brush Mountain Bison in Centre County, PA, where he grew 50 acres of hemp grain. We’ll hear about harvest and dry down and crushing the seed for oil and cake.