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Mahindra Agri Solutions acquires 60% stake in Dutch co OFD Holding BV
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Wednesday, 07 December, 2016, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Our Bureau, Bengaluru
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Mahindra Agri Solutions Ltd, a part of the $17.8-billion Mahindra Group, has inked a definitive agreement to acquire a 60 per cent stake in the Netherlands-based OFD Holding BV. The latter is the holding company for the distribution of fruits globally.
Origin Fruit Direct’s (OFD) presence in grapes and citrus fruits naturally mitigates seasonality through round-the-year presence across markets and sources.
Mahindra and OFD already have a supplier-customer relationship, which shall be further strengthened to address the market needs.
This acquisition gives access to a large sourcing base to both the companies, encompassing India, South American countries and South Africa, as well as a distribution base in Europe (the biggest importer,accounting for 24 per cent of the global imports of grapes) and China [the fastest-growing importer, at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 31 per cent].
The company is working to be among the top global players in grapes with a transnational sourcing and distribution network.
This acquisition is a step towards expanding the sourcing base to South American countries and South Africa, as well as expanding the distribution base to Europe and China.
OFD Holding BV owns Origin Fruit Direct, Origin Direct Asia and Origin Fruit Services South America which are based out of the Netherlands, China and Chile, respectively.
“Our partnership with OFD Holding BV, which takes us closer to achieving our vision of being a significant global player in grapes. We have been working with farmers in India for a long time, and this association will bring in a lot of synergy by giving access to new markets to our farmers,” said Ashok Sharma, president, agribusiness, and managing director and chief executive officer, Mahindra Agri Solutions.
Vikram Puri, executive vice-president, Mahindra Agri Solutions Ltd, said, “Our investment into OFD Holding BV gives us a presence in the European and Chinese markets, allowing us to reach new customers and strengthen our relationship with existing customers.”
Corné van de Klundert, managing director, OFD Holding BV and Origin Fruit Direct BV, said,“This will strengthen our position as an integrated supply chain company. OFD was founded in 2006 as the sales operation of a South African producer, and has since developed a network of key retail customers in Europe as well as Asia.”
“India is an increasingly important supplier of grapes to our markets, and Mahindra is one of the largest exporters, which is giving us access to a growing volume of excellent quality grapes,” he added.
“We are looking forward to intensifying our cooperation with the Mahindra team and the growers, to jointly develop innovations, new markets and customers,” van de Klundert stated.
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