Louis Dreyfus Company acquires Viterra’s grains and oilseeds businesses in Hungary and Poland

NETHERLANDS – Louis Dreyfus Co. (LDC) has finalized its acquisition of Viterra’s former grains and oilseeds operations in Hungary and Poland from Bunge Global SA, strengthening its footprint in Europe’s agricultural supply chain.

The announcement was made on September 1, with financial terms undisclosed.

The transaction follows Bunge’s US$8.2 billion merger with Viterra, completed on July 2. As a condition for approval, the European Commission required Bunge to divest all of Viterra’s oilseed businesses in Hungary and Poland, along with related logistical assets.

Michael Gelchie, chief executive officer of LDC, described the acquisition as aligned with the group’s long-term strategy.

“The transaction reflects the Group’s strategic plans to further reinforce its core merchandizing capabilities; in this case, for European grains and oilseeds origination, processing and distribution,” he said.

In Hungary, the deal covers a state-of-the-art multi-seed crushing and refining facility in Foktő, one of Europe’s largest sunflower seed processing plants. Located in Hungary’s sunflower-growing belt, the plant also produces sunflower-based lecithin.

Additional assets include three storage and logistics sites in Debrecen, Gyomaendrőd, and Berettyóújfalu with a combined capacity of 150,000 tonnes, as well as a Budapest-based trading and origination team.

In Poland, the acquisition adds a multi-seed crushing and refining plant in Bodaczów, which processes rapeseed, sunflower seeds, and soybeans, contributing roughly 15% of Poland’s rapeseed crush volume.

The facility supplies refined rapeseed oil to food and biodiesel markets, while its meal output is largely directed to local feed compounders and animal protein producers. Complementing this are four strategically located storage and logistics sites across Poland, with about 170,000 tonnes of combined capacity, some equipped with railway links, and a trading team in Gdansk.

According to André Roth, head of LDC’s Grains & Oilseeds platform, the acquisition enhances the company’s reach in Europe’s oilseeds market.

“This development presents a strategic opportunity for LDC’s Grains & Oilseeds platform to expand its business in a growing global sunflower market, reinforce its presence in the EU, in particular through increased exposure to the EU rapeseed complex, and enables LDC’s entry into Central European markets, including for the distribution of imported meals in the region and the development of grain origination along the Danube,” he said.

The expansion is also expected to complement LDC’s existing grains and meals operations in Poland, further strengthening its role in the European agricultural sector.

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