ABHR learns how the Bunge and Viterra merger will affect the Australian bulk handling industry.
Viterra, one of the largest buyers of Australian agricultural commodities, has finalised its merge with a US-based agricultural giant.
First announced in 2023, regulatory approvals pushed back the Bunge and Viterra merger for nearly two years. The respective agribusinesses are now one company, which is simply known as Bunge.
The merger aims to enhance the company’s ability to meet the demands of increasingly complex markets and create a strong financial profile.
Bunge chief executive officer Greg Heckman said it’s a defining moment for the company and the global team.
“I’m grateful to our colleagues whose energy, collaboration and commitment brought us to this milestone. Together, we’ve formed a stronger organisation with enhanced capabilities and expertise to meet the evolving needs of our customers, maximise value for our stakeholders and fulfill our shared purpose to connect farmers to consumers to deliver food, feed and fuel to the world,” he said.
Now, we begin the exciting work of bringing our teams and operations together, uniting our strengths to realise the full potential of this combination.”
In Australia, Bunge has 55 storage and handling sites and six port terminals across South Australia and western Victoria. It also has three storage and handling sites, including a port terminal in southern Western Australia, two import facilities in Victoria and New South Wales, and eight offices spread across the country in key growing regions.
A Bunge spokesperson told ABHR that the merger brings together a diverse and talented group of people, creating a team of around 900 employees to service over 13,000 farmer customers.
“Our team has been busy integrating our combined business and our joint expertise will bring benefits to our farmer customers, as well as our end use customers in Australia’s local and international destination markets,” the representative said.
“By combining our strengths, we’re able to offer expanded market opportunities, a more diversified and resilient agriculture network, and enhance our services to support our farmers in maximising the value of their grain. Our buyer and end use customers will experience greater supply chain certainty, expanded access to high-quality Australian grain, and a more efficient, integrated network that enables stronger connections between origin and destination.”
Bunge remains committed to serving and collaborating with growers to discover new markets for their products and to improve the productivity and environmental efficiency of agriculture, the spokesperson said.
In a media release, Bunge said that the highly complementary asset footprints of each company when combined will be positioned to connect farmers in the world’s largest production regions to areas with the fastest-growing consumption.
Viterra chief executive officer David Mattiske has joined the Bunge executive leadership team as co-chief operating officer alongside Julio Garros, the most recent Bunge co-president of agribusiness.
The Bunge spokesperson said for the 2025/26 harvest, it’s business as usual across its operations and short-term and long-term goals remain the same.
“Farmers and buyers continue to engage with our team and utilise our sites and services as they have in the past. Across Australia, our business is operating as Bunge, with a transition to the Bunge brand underway,” they said.
