AGT Food and Ingredients

Last updated
AGT Food and Ingredients Inc.
Type Private Company
IndustryAgriculture
Founded2001
Headquarters Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada
Number of locations
47 facilities (2016)
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Murad Al-Katib (President and CEO)
Hüseyin Arslan (Executive Chairman)
RevenueIncrease2.svgCA$1.9 billion(2016) [1]
Increase2.svgCA$83 million(2016) [1]
Increase2.svgCA$21 million(2016) [1]
Total assets Decrease2.svgCA$1.3 billion(2016) [1]
Total equity Decrease2.svgCA$0.3 billion(2016) [1]
Number of employees
1,900 (2016) [2]

AGT Food and Ingredients is a Canadian processor of pulses and other food ingredients. It is one of the largest pulse-processing companies in the world. [3]

Contents

History

AGT was founded in 2001 as SaskCan Pulse Trading by Murad Al-Katib, the present CEO. [3] He received funding from the Arslan family of Turkey, owners of the Arbel group, a Turkish pulse-processing company. [3]

In 2007, the Agtech Income Fund acquired SaskCan, and then renamed itself Alliance Grain Traders. [4] As a result of this deal, Alliance Grain Traders was listed on Toronto Venture Exchange. [4]

In 2009, Alliance Grain Traders converted from an income fund to a normal corporation. Also in 2009, Alliance Grain Traders bought the Arbel group for $104 million, including its pasta business. [4] [5]

In 2011, the company took over South Africa based Advance Seed. [6] Since 2012, it has shifted into the packaged foods business. [7] In particular, it has expanded production at its facility in Minot, North Dakota. [8]

In 2014, the company was renamed AGT Food and Ingredients. [3] In 2015, AGT bought Big Sky Rail, a Saskatchewan short line railway, for $57.5 million. [9] In 2018, it was part of the consortium that purchased the Hudson Bay Railway. [10]

On February 5th, 2019, the company announced shareholder approval for a privatization deal led by its President and Chief Executive Officer, Murad Al-Katib, in consortium with Fairfax Financial and Point North Capital. [11] On April 17, 2019, the transaction to take the company private was closed. [12]

Business

AGT buys, processes, and distributes pulses, including lentils, peas, and beans, as well as grains and other agricultural commodities. [7] It also manufactures and distributes food ingredients and packaged foods. In 2016, pulses were responsible for 58% of sales, milled grains for 7%, and rices and other products for 35%. [2] As of 2016, 58% of revenue was from pulse and grain processing, 28% was from distribution, and the other 14% was from food ingredients and packaged foods. [2] It has facilities in Canada, the United States, Turkey, China, South Africa, and Australia. In 2016, 6% of sales were in Canada, 12% were in the rest of the Americas, 28% were in Asia-Pacific, and the other 54% were in Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa. [2]

Related Research Articles

Bunge Limited is an American agribusiness and food company, incorporated in Bermuda, and headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, United States.

ADM (company) American food processing and commodities trading corporation

The Archer-Daniels-Midland Company, commonly known as ADM, is an American multinational food processing and commodities trading corporation founded in 1902 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The company operates more than 270 plants and 420 crop procurement facilities worldwide, where cereal grains and oilseeds are processed into products used in food, beverage, nutraceutical, industrial, and animal feed markets worldwide.

Legume Plant in the family Fabaceae

A legume is a plant in the family Fabaceae, or the fruit or seed of such a plant. When used as a dry grain, the seed is also called a pulse. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consumption, for livestock forage and silage, and as soil-enhancing green manure. Well-known legumes include beans, soybeans, peas, chickpeas, peanuts, lentils, lupins, mesquite, carob, tamarind, alfalfa, and clover. Legumes produce a botanically unique type of fruit – a simple dry fruit that develops from a simple carpel and usually dehisces on two sides.

Black-eyed pea Subspecies of cowpea plant

The black-eyed pea or black-eyed bean is a legume grown around the world for its medium-sized, edible bean. It is a subspecies of the cowpea, an Old World plant domesticated in Africa, and is sometimes simply called a cowpea.

Pilaf Rice dish

Pilau or Pilaf is a rice dish, or in some regions, a wheat dish, whose recipe usually involves cooking in stock or broth, adding spices, and other ingredients such as vegetables or meat, and employing some technique for achieving cooked grains that do not adhere.

Cargill American-based international food conglomerate

Cargill, Inc. is an American privately held global food corporation based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, and incorporated in Wilmington, Delaware. Founded in 1865, it is the largest privately held corporation in the United States in terms of revenue. If it were a public company, it would rank, as of 2015, number 15 on the Fortune 500, behind McKesson and ahead of AT&T. Cargill has frequently been the subject of criticism related to the environment, human rights, finance, and other ethical considerations.

<i>Lathyrus sativus</i> Species of plant

Lathyrus sativus, also known as grass pea, cicerchia, blue sweet pea, chickling pea, chickling vetch, Indian pea, white pea and white vetch, is a legume commonly grown for human consumption and livestock feed in Asia and East Africa. It is a particularly important crop in areas that are prone to drought and famine, and is thought of as an 'insurance crop' as it produces reliable yields when all other crops fail. The Serra de'Conti Cicerchia is included in the Ark of Taste.

Plant milk Milk-like drink made from plant-based ingredients

Plant milk is a plant beverage with a color resembling that of milk. Plant milks are non-dairy beverages made from a water-based plant extract for flavoring and aroma. Plant milks are consumed as plant-based alternatives to dairy milk, and often provide a creamy mouthfeel. By 2021, among some 17 plants are used to manufacture plant milk, almond, oat, soy, and coconut were the highest-selling plant milks worldwide.

SunOpta

SunOpta, Inc. is a multi-national food and mineral company headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario and founded in 1973.

The economy of Saskatchewan has been associated with agriculture resulting in the moniker "Bread Basket of Canada" and Bread Basket of the World. According to the Government of Saskatchewan, approximately 95% of all items produced in Saskatchewan, depend on the basic resources available within the province. Various grains, livestock, oil and gas, potash, uranium, wood and their spin off industries fuel the economy.

Yıldız Holding Turkish conglomerate

Yıldız Holding is a Turkish conglomerate that is best known for manufacturing food products. The company also produces other consumer goods and has its own retail, private equity and real estate operations.

Big Sky Rail is a short line railway operating in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada.

Post Holdings American consumer packaged goods holding company

Post Holdings is an American consumer packaged goods holding company headquartered in the suburban St. Louis community of Brentwood, Missouri. It operates in the center-of-the-store, foodservice, food ingredient, refrigerated, active nutrition and private label categories. Its Post Consumer Brands business manufactures, markets and sells both branded and private label cereal products. Its Michael Foods Group business supplies value-added egg products and refrigerated potato products to the foodservice and food ingredient channels.

Dal pulses used throughout South Asia in cooking

Dal is a term originating in the India for dried, split pulses that do not require soaking before cooking. Certain regions in Bangladesh, Afghanistan and India are the largest producers of pulses in the world. The term is also used for various soups prepared from these pulses. These pulses are among the most important staple foods in South Asian countries, and form an important part of the cuisines of South Asia.

Middle Eastern cuisine Regional cuisine

Middle Eastern cuisine or West Asian cuisine includes Arab, Armenian, Assyrian, Azerbaijani, Cypriot, Georgian, Iranian, Palestinian, Kurdish, and Turkish cuisines. Common ingredients include olives and olive oil, pitas, honey, sesame seeds, dates, sumac, chickpeas, mint, rice and parsley, and popular dishes include kebabs, dolmas, falafel, baklava, yogurt, doner kebab, shawarma and mulukhiyah.

Pigeon pea Species of perennial legume

The pigeon pea is a perennial legume from the family Fabaceae. Since its domestication in the Indian subcontinent at least 3,500 years ago, its seeds have become a common food in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. It is consumed on a large scale in South Asia and is a major source of protein for the population of the Indian subcontinent. It is the primary accompaniment to rice or roti and has the status of staple food throughout the length and breadth of India.

Bowmans Rail

Bowmans Rail is an Australian railway operator hauling freight in South Australia.

Elmhurst 1925

Elmhurst 1925 is a plant-based food and beverage company located in Elma, New York. The company manufactures and sells non-dairy, plant-based milks made from nuts, grains, and seeds. The first four nutmilks – almond, cashew, hazelnut, and walnut – debuted at Natural Products Expo West in March 2017. A number of additional products have launched since, including their line of unsweetened plant milks made with only two to three ingredients, award winning barista editions, dairy-free creamers, and single serve ready-to-drink options.

Arctic Gateway Group LP is a public-private partnership formed to own and operate the Port of Churchill and the Hudson Bay Railway, which connects The Pas to Churchill, Manitoba. The fifty percent public share of the partnership was Missinippi Rail LP, a consortium of northern Manitoba First Nations and local governments, with the private share was split between Toronto-based Fairfax Financial Holdings and Regina-based grains company AGT Food and Ingredients. The partnership operated from offices in The Pas and Regina. In March 2021, FairFax Financial Holdings and AGT Food and Ingredients transferred their shares to OneNorth, a consortium of Indigenous and Community partners, meaning that Arctic Gateway is completely owned by community and Indigenous partners.

Nancy Ames is a Canadian scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada known for her research on the nutrition and quality of cereals and pulses. She works closely with plant scientists to maximize the health benefits of new varieties and ensure that these benefits are maintained when the crops are harvested and processed. Ames also works with food processors to develop new food processing techniques and new ways to evaluate them. She has invented new food products and holds two patents. She was the scientific lead that lead to the health claim “Barley beta-glucan soluble fibre and reduction of blood cholesterol, a risk factor for cardiovascular disease” which was approved by Health Canada in 2012. She has been instrumental in promoting the health benefits of cereal grains in Canada.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "AGT Financial Results 2016" . Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "AGT Annual Information Form 2016" . Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "The Power of Pulses: A tale of two pulse processors". Regina Leader-Post. 2016-08-19. Retrieved 2018-01-02.
  4. 1 2 3 "A decade on Alliance Grain Traders has achieved a lot". Financial Post. 2013-01-31. Retrieved 2018-01-02.
  5. "Alliance Grain to buy Arbel Group in $93 mln deal". Reuters. 2009-06-17. Retrieved 2018-01-02.
  6. "South Africa: Advance Seed Taken Over By Alliance Grain Traders". Biz-Community (Cape Town). 2011-10-13. Retrieved 2018-01-02.
  7. 1 2 Milstead, David (2017-11-11). "Smart Money Willing to Play the Waiting Game on AGT". The Globe and Mail.
  8. "Food sector bright spot for AGT - The Western Producer". The Western Producer. 2016-03-31. Retrieved 2018-01-02.
  9. "Pea Producer Bypasses Prairie Traffic Jam With Own Railroad". Bloomberg.com. 2015-12-15. Retrieved 2018-01-02.
  10. "Warm reception in Churchill for new owners of port and railway | CBC News". CBC. Retrieved 2018-09-19.
  11. "AGT Food and Ingredients Inc. Announces Shareholder Approval of Plan of Arrangement and the Final Results of the Cash Tender Offer and Consent Solicitation for its 5.875% Senior Notes due 2021 (Press release)". www.newswire.ca. Feb 5, 2019. Retrieved 2019-09-01.
  12. "AGT Food and Ingredients Inc. Announces Completion of the Plan of Arrangement and Tender Offer (Press release)". www.newswire.ca. Apr 17, 2019. Retrieved 2019-09-01.