Boortmalt will take over Cargill Malt's malthouses in nine countries with total production capacity of 1.7 mmt.

November 5, 2019

3 Min Read
barley - malted barley grains
rasilja/iStock/Getty Images

Cargill and Axereal, France's largest grain cooperative, announced Nov. 4 their intention to enter into an agreement under which Cargill will sell its malt business to Axereal's malt subsidiary, Boortmalt. The transaction involves the global malt business, including its facilities across four continents representing more than 500 people.

This transaction would give Boortmalt access to a global footprint and offer further growth opportunities for Cargill' malt business and its people, according to the announcement.

Cargill Malt serves the brewing, food and beverage industries by originating and transforming malting barley into malt.

Boortmalt is one of the world's leading maltsters. This acquisition strengthens Axereal's position globally and makes Boortmalt the world's leading player in the production of malt, according to the announcement.

Jean-François Loiseau, president of Axereal Group, said, "This acquisition meets our two strategic objectives: first, to invest in the downstream of barley to increase the value of our farmers production in France and internationally, and especially in growing markets. Second, we have a long-term vision for our cooperative farmers. This acquisition will help ensure that our trajectory is competitive. We, at Axereal, are leading the way for the agricultural transition with industrial innovation that provides quality food while respecting the environment."

Paul-Yves L'Anthoen, chief executive officer of Axereal Group, added, "This acquisition is a major step in our cooperative's strategic plan: It allows us to diversify our sources of value, and it bolsters the group's position in a growing sector. It also strengthens our relationship with the financial community."

Through this acquisition, Boortmalt will take over all Cargill Malt activities, including 16 malthouses in nine countries, nearly 600 employees and a total production capacity of 1.7 million metric tons.

This will bring Boortmalt Group's total capacity to 3 mmt, with 27 malting plants on five continents, making Boortmalt the global leader in the production of malt, the announcement said. Boortmalt's headquarters and research and development center will remain in Antwerp, Belgium, making the Antwerp malthouse the biggest in the world.

Boortmalt CEO Yvan Schaepman said, "Such a takeover offers us new growth prospects and will enable us to better mitigate risks, particularly those linked to climate change. It also allows us to accelerate the development of new malting barley varieties and to create new malts. With this acquisition, we are pursuing our primary ambition: to become the best maltster in the world."

Entry into the sale agreement is subject to information and/or consultation procedures with the appropriate employee representative bodies. The transaction will be subject to regulatory and other approvals and is expected to close in the second half of 2019.

Boortmalt, an Axereal subsidiary with almost 1,000 employees, produces and markets high-quality malts for brewery, distillery companies worldwide as well as for microbreweries. Boortmalt was created in 1927 in Belgium and has expertise in the production of specialty malts, a key ingredient for the production of beers, whiskies and food.

Axereal, with revenue of approximately 3 billion euros, is one of the leading cereal cooperative groups in France and specializes in the production and processing of cereals for the brewery, bakery and livestock markets.

Cargill has 155,000 employees across 70 countries working to connect farmers with markets, customers with ingredients and people and animals with the food they need to thrive.

Subscribe to Our Newsletters
Feedstuffs is the news source for animal agriculture

You May Also Like