Grain handling giant Viterra plans to step up its ability to source Ukrainian wheat, barley and canola through a new marketing office in that country's capital city.

Viterra said late Wednesday that the Black Sea region's "growing global importance" in producing those crops will give the company "additional opportunities for the origination and marketing of food ingredients into key markets in Europe, Africa and the Middle East."

The company's presence through its Kiev office "will complement our existing origination capabilities and provide further access to growing markets, along with the firsthand insight needed to strengthen our marketing programs to supply the unique needs of our customers," Don Chapman, Viterra's senior vice-president for international grain, said in a release.

To that end, the Regina-based company on Wednesday also announced it's hired a new managing director, Bjorn Stendel, previously the general director for German commodity trader Toepfer International's grain business in Ukraine.

Stendel, Viterra said, has "15 years of experience in developing and implementing entry strategies in Ukraine, and managing grain businesses with substantial asset bases."

Viterra, already Canada's largest grain handler, in its release cited the U.S. Food and Agriculture Policy Research Institute as saying net trade exports of wheat, barley and canola from the Black Sea region alone are expected to rise by 23 per cent, about 7.6 million tonnes, over the next 10 years.

"By establishing our company in key geographic areas such as Ukraine, we extend our ability to manage trade flows of food ingredients, freight activities and arbitrage opportunities, while managing price risk," Christian Joerg, the company's Geneva-based vice-president and managing director for Europe, said in the same release.

Ukraine, as "the fifth-largest wheat exporting nation in the world, is playing an increasingly important role in addressing global food demand," Chapman said.
 


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