Cargill announced Monday that it purchased Joe White Maltings, which it described as the largest malt producer in Australia, from multinational commodity trading company Glencore International, for an undisclosed sum.
 
Wayzata-based Cargill—which operates in the agricultural, financial, and industrial markets—said the deal is subject to approvals but both parties expect to complete the transaction before the end of 2013.
 
“Through its investments over many years, Cargill continues to demonstrate a long-term commitment to the future and success of Australian agriculture and farmers,” Philippa Purser, Cargill’s managing director of Australian operations, said in a statement. “We look forward to bringing our malt industry expertise and additional capital to Joe White Maltings to continue to grow the business.”

 
Cargill said it currently operates malting facilities in Europe and North and South America but previously had no presence in the Australian malting market. Joe White Maltings will provide Cargill with seven plants throughout the country, which supply brewers in multiple countries in Southeast Asia, as well as Australia.
 
“The addition of Joe White Malting will complete Cargill’s global footprint in all key barley production areas and enable us to better serve our global and leading regional brewers in the region,” Doug Eden, president of Cargill’s global malt business, said in a statement.
 
The Joe White Malting acquisition follows a number of deals Cargill has made throughout Australia. In 2010 the company spent $800 million on an Australian grain commodities business called AWB. The following year, Cargill formed a joint venture with Australian beef-processing company Teys Bros Pty., Ltd.
 
Cargill is also not the only Minnesota agricultural company investing in the Australian market. In July, Inver Grove Heights-based CHS, Inc., purchased a 50 percent stake in Australian grain-marketing company Agfarm.
 
Cargill and CHS formed a joint venture called Horizon Milling in 2002. In March, Cargill struck another deal with CHS—along with Nebraska-based ConAgra—to form a new flour-milling venture, which would combine Horizon Milling with ConAgra Mills and be called Ardent Mills.
 
Cargill also recently expanded into Australia’s neighboring Southeast Asia region with the purchase of shrimp-feed manufacturer Siamakme Aquatic Feeds in Thailand.
 
Cargill employs 142,000 people in 65 countries. It is Minnesota’s largest private company based on revenue, which totaled $1.34 billion in its most recent fiscal year.