From the editors of Feedstuffs
By Krissa WelshansBunge Limited, the world's largest oilseed processor, and Glencore-backed Viterra Limited announced today that they have reached an $8.2 billion merger deal to create one of the world’s leading agriculture trading companies. The deal is expected to close in mid-2024, subject to regulatory approval.
Under the terms of the agreement, which was unanimously approved by the boards of directors of Bunge and Viterra, Viterra shareholders would receive approximately 65.6 million shares of Bunge stock, with an aggregate value of approximately $6.2 billion, and approximately $2.0 billion in cash, representing a consideration mix of approximately 75% Bunge stock and 25% cash. As part of the transaction, Bunge will assume $9.8 billion of Viterra debt, which is associated with approximately $9.0 billion of highly-liquid Readily Marketable Inventories.
In addition, Bunge plans to repurchase $2.0 billion of Bunge’s stock (the Repurchase Plan) to enhance accretion to adjusted EPS.
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Reported food spending has increased to its highest level since the Consumer Food Insights Report began surveying in January 2022, possibly leaving consumers feeling little relief from inflation.
Reflecting this reality, consumers say they are spending 6.9% more on food, an uptick from last month, according to the May survey report. At the same time, the report shows that the rate of grocery stockouts has continued to decrease. This is a positive sign for consumer spending as it means less upward pressure on prices.
The survey-based report out of Purdue University's Center for Food Demand Analysis and Sustainability assesses food spending, consumer satisfaction and values, support of agricultural and food policies, and trust in information sources.Purdue experts conducted and evaluated the survey, which included 1,200 consumers across the United States.Read more
USDA announced a multi-step effort to strengthen animal-raising terms used in marketing. The move comes in response to multiple stakeholders asking the agency’s Food Safety and Inspection Service to reevaluate how certain claims are verified. Of particular concern are the validity of “negative” antibiotic animal-raising claims. FSIS will soon partner with USDA’s Agricultural Research Service to conduct a sampling of antibiotic residues in cattle marketed as “raised without antibiotics.” Read more
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced this week the successful implementation of guidance for industry (GFI) #263, “Recommendations for Sponsors of Medically Important Antimicrobial Drugs Approved for Use in Animals to Voluntarily Bring Under Veterinary Oversight All Products That Continue to be Available Over-the-Counter.” GFI #263 was introduced in draft in 2019 and the final guidance published in June 2021.
FDA shared that all affected animal drug sponsors opted to either voluntarily change the approved marketing status of certain medically important antimicrobial drugs for animals from over-the-counter (OTC) to prescription (Rx) or to voluntarily withdraw approval of their affected OTC animal drug applications. As a result, all products affected by GFI #263 that enter the marketplace will now have prescription labels.Read more
By Krissa WelshansWalmart has announced it is building its first-ever fully owned and operated case-ready beef facility in Olathe, Kansas. The retailer will invest $257 million in the plant, which will process Angus cuts, supplied by Sustainable Beef LLC, into case-ready beef products such as steaks and roasts to be sold in Walmart stores across the Midwest. Set to break ground later this year, the facility will create 667 new permanent jobs once it opens in 2025.
“Technological advances in the food supply chain continue to reshape the industry. Walmart’s innovative new facility further solidifies Kansas’ position as one of the nation’s top food and agriculture states,” said Gov. Laura Kelly.
The opening of the 330,000-square-foot facility will further Walmart’s efforts in creating an end-to-end supply chain for high-quality Angus beef while increasing transparency and capacity in its supply chain to deliver high-quality products for its customers in the Midwest.
MSD Animal Health Receives EU approval of Innovax-ILT-IBD
MSD Animal Health, a division of Merck & Co. announced that the European Commission has approved Innovax-ILT-IBD, a dual-construct HVT vaccine that provides long-term protection against infectious laryngotracheitis (ILT), infectious bursal disease (IBD) and Marek’s disease (MD) in poultry. Following the centralized approval procedure, all European Union countries in which Innovax-ILT-IBD is licensed will update their national registrations.
Innovax-ILT-IBD is the first and only vaccine approved in the EU to provide combined protection against the development of ILT, IBD and MD in a single injection. The approval follows a positive opinion from the Committee for Veterinary Medicinal Products (CVMP) received in April 2023.
Building on MSD Animal Health’s legacy of protection offered by Innovax-ILT, Innovax-ILT-IBD features two ILT glycoprotein inserts instead of one. Furthermore, clinical trial data show that Innovax-ILT-IBD has an early onset and a long duration of immunity.Read more
Midwest Veterinary Supply, a Minnesota-based company that supplies prescription drugs for animals to veterinarians, farms, feedlots and other businesses, was sentenced to one year of probation for introducing misbranded drugs into interstate commerce.In addition, Midwest Veterinary Supply agreed to pay over $11 million in criminal fines and forfeiture.According to court documents, from 2011-2021, Midwest charged and shipped over $10 million in prescription drugs from their non-pharmacy locations throughout the United States to end-users that were not authorized to receive prescription drugs. Shipments from non-pharmacy locations to non-authorized end-users or locations are deemed “misbranded.”Read more
