BEIJING, CHINA — COFCO Corporation, the largest grain, oil and foodstuff company in China, and Nidera, a global commodity trader and agribusiness company headquartered in the Netherlands, on Feb. 28 signed an agreement, pursuant to which COFCO will acquire 51% of Nidera to establish a strategic partnership. Nidera, a major player in the international agricultural market, has an annual turnover in excess of $17 billion.

The transaction will provide Nidera with great potential for growth in the Chinese market and also strengthen COFCO’s position as a key player in the global agricultural industry through access to Nidera’s global origination and trading network and its fast growing seed business, the companies said.

“We are delighted to reach a win-win agreement with Nidera. Nidera has a strong origination platform in Brazil, Argentina and Central Europe as well as a global trading network, which can further extend COFCO’s global presence and create new opportunities,” said Patrick Yu, president of COFCO. “COFCO is fully committed to supporting Nidera’s future development through COFCO’s competitive edge in trading, processing, branding and distribution.”

“This deal will generate great growth opportunities. The Chinese and Asian market share is of great importance to Nidera,” said Ton Van Der Laan, chief executive officer of Nidera. We were looking for a strong partner to jointly invest in future growth and a strategic partnership with COFCO is an ideal choice for Nidera and will benefit both sides.”

“Investing in Nidera is inline with COFCO’s strategy to become a global player in the agricultural industry with a fully integrated value chain and represents a significant step towards COFCO’s global expansion,” said Frank Ning, chairman of COFCO.

In the coming months both COFCO and Nidera will work together to obtain regulatory approvals to close the transaction. According to the agreement, the existing shareholders of Nidera will all remain as shareholders of the company and the current leadership and management of Nidera will stay to secure a smooth integration and successful partnership.