CHICAGO and MINNEAPOLIS, Oct. 29,
2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Archer Daniels Midland
Company (NYSE: ADM) and Cargill,
Incorporated, have agreed to form a technology joint venture,
Grainbridge LLC. The joint venture intends to provide grain
marketing decision support, e-commerce and account management
software for North American farmers. This includes the development
of digital tools designed to help farmers across the U.S. and
Canada consolidate information on
production economics and grain marketing activities into a single
digital platform, at no cost to them.
"Farmers can more effectively market grain and improve their
profitability using technology and data analytics," said
Roger Watchorn, president of
Cargill's North American
agricultural supply chain. "They need digital tools that seamlessly
connect their production and cost-of-production data from a variety
of sources already used on their farms—but those tools simply
aren't available today. Together, Cargill and ADM's unique technology
capabilities, grain handling operations and years of farm
consulting experience allow us to more quickly create the digital
tools that will drive efficiency and profitability for
farmers."
"Farmers deserve the convenience of technology that gives them
the power to make quick, effective and fact-based grain marketing
decisions," said Wes Uhlmeyer,
president, ADM Grain. "This new joint venture will provide for
these needs with a single, powerful, easy-to-use platform for
farmers to manage their accounts, make grain marketing decisions
and execute transactions. We're particularly excited to work with
Cargill on this joint venture to
offer an unparalleled array of tools that provide farmers across
the country access to powerful decision support, business
intelligence and transactional efficiency. While remaining strong
competitors, we recognize the need to advance technology for
farmers and believe that together we can accomplish that common
goal."
One of the first tools being developed by Grainbridge will give
farmers secure access to their combined ADM and Cargill transactions, including contracts,
scale tickets and payment information. This dashboard is being
designed to provide farmers with insights into their current grain
position and real-time opportunities.
Soon after, the new venture intends to introduce a simple and
easy way for farmers to execute grain transactions on their own
schedule. With this platform, farmers will have access to automated
intelligence that illustrates changing break-even levels (updated
based on current crop conditions), margin price targets, total
current grain and risk management positions, revenue at risk and
access to benchmark and historical insights.
Grainbridge welcomes other grain companies, grain buyers,
technology and data providers to participate on the platform. This
open approach will enhance the information available on the
platform, giving farmers a complete, seamless 360-degree view of
their business without having to consolidate these information
sources on their own. Strong protections built into the system will
safeguard customer data and prioritize privacy. Data will not be on
the Grainbridge platform unless approved by the individual farmer,
and individual customer data will not be shared between
participating companies.
"We are often asked by our farmer customers to provide
technology solutions that provide them relief to a problem they are
experiencing—and we can sense the underlying need to solve a
variety of problems that go unmentioned," said Uhlmeyer. "This new
platform will be a tool they've long needed that solves many of
those known and suspected pain points we hear about each day. We're
excited to bring these types of innovative and progressive
solutions to the industry."
"The ultimate goal is to help farmers make better, smarter
decisions, using the data that is already existing in their
operations. We are simply putting that data and related insights at
their fingertips, allowing them to more effectively adapt to
changing market conditions," said Watchorn. "Both Cargill and ADM
are committed to helping farmers succeed. It's why we're in this
business, and why we'll continue to invest in these tools well into
the future."
The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and is
expected to close in the next few months. Terms of the joint
venture are not being disclosed.
To learn more: www.abettergrainfuture.com
About ADM
For more than a century, the people of
Archer Daniels Midland Company (NYSE: ADM) have transformed crops
into products that serve the vital needs of a growing world. Today,
we're one of the world's largest agricultural processors and food
ingredient providers, with approximately 31,000 employees serving
customers in more than 170 countries. With a global value chain
that includes approximately 500 crop procurement locations, 270
ingredient manufacturing facilities, 44 innovation centers and the
world's premier crop transportation network, we connect the harvest
to the home, making products for food, animal feed, industrial and
energy uses. Learn more at www.adm.com.
About Cargill
Cargill's 155,000 employees across 70
countries work relentlessly to achieve our purpose of nourishing
the world in a safe, responsible and sustainable way. Every day, we
connect farmers with markets, customers with ingredients, and
people and animals with the food they need to thrive.
We combine 153 years of experience with new technologies and
insights to serve as a trusted partner for food, agriculture,
financial and industrial customers in more than 125 countries.
Side-by-side, we are building a stronger, sustainable future for
agriculture. Learn more at www.cargill.com/news.
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