November 14, 2007

Expansion moves at Multigrain

Multigrain, a leading Brazil-based agricultural commodity business, announced it has acquired 100,000 hectares (247,000 acres) of farmland and related processing operations to strengthen its ability to serve its customers globally.

CHS Inc. of St. Paul, Minnesota, PMG Trading of Brazil, and Mitsui & Co. Ltd of Japan are owners of Multigrain AG, the holding company for Multigrain.

The buyout consists of land in the western Bahia, western Minas Gerais and southern Maranhao. The operations, known as XinguAgri farms, include production of soy, corn, cotton and sugarcane, as well as cotton processing in four locations. Multigrain currently is exploring opportunities for ethanol manufacturing in connection with its sugarcane production.

Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Stefano Rettore, Multigrain chairman and general manager of CHS Brazil operations, in a statement, said "this extension into agricultural production strengthens the ability of Multigrain and its owners to originate commodities for global customers. This is an important step for Multigrain as a fully integrated agricultural company with production, origination, processing and import/export capabilities".

"Backed by the strength of CHS and its producers in US grain origination, Mitsui's involvement in global imports and logistics, and PMG's experience in Brazilian agriculture, this acquisition enhances our ability to be a dependable, quality supplier year-around."

Multigrain is an integrated agribusiness company involved in production, processing and logistics. It markets soy, corn, wheat, sugar and cotton and has recently completed the construction of a wheat import facility at the Brazilian port city of Santos. CHS and PMG Trading each own 37.5 percent of Multigrain AG. Mitsui acquired a 25 percent share in August 2007.