January 29, 2010

US co-op to export Australian wheat

A giant US farmer co-operative has set up an Australian arm to export durum wheat to Italy and North Africa.

CHS DU (Australia) was granted accreditation by Wheat Exports Australia last November to export Australian wheat to overseas markets.

Australian Securities and Investment Commission records show that CHS DU (Australia) was registered last June as a fully owned subsidiary of the giant US farmer co-operative CHS Inc.

CHS Inc trades grain and oilseeds in the US and internationally. Last year, its income was $US25.7 billion, down from the record $US32.2 billion revenue of the previous year. It trades about 27 million tonnes of grain and oilseeds each year.

Speaking from the US, CHS DU (Australia) managing director Gary Anderson said the parent company, CHS, was the largest exporter of durum wheat out of the US.

Anderson said CHS also sourced durum from northwestern Mexico and is now looking to export from Australia to satisfy its Italian and north African buyers in the counter season to the northern hemisphere.