COFCO International Joins Initiative to Modernize Global Agricultural Commodity Trade Operations

CHICAGO & WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. & MINNEAPOLIS & GENEVA & ROTTERDAM, Netherlands--(BUSINESS WIRE)--COFCO International Ltd (“COFCO International”) is partnering with Archer Daniels Midland Company (NYSE: ADM) (“ADM”), Bunge Limited (NYSE: BG) (“Bunge”), Cargill Incorporated (“Cargill”), and Louis Dreyfus Company (“LDC”) to standardize data and digitize global agricultural shipping transactions. Together, the companies are looking to increase transparency and efficiency for customers through digital technologies, such as blockchain and artificial intelligence.

“We are pleased to join this initiative as a founding member,” said Johnny Chi, Chairman and CEO of COFCO International. “Emerging technologies like blockchain give us the opportunity to create a transparent, secure and efficient platform and transform global agricultural trade operations. Our shared vision is to develop a new standard available to everyone, bringing industry-wide benefits.”

Announced in October, the partnership is initially focused on developing technologies to automate grain and oilseed post-trade execution processes, significantly reducing costs and resources needed to move documents around the globe. Longer term, the initiative will drive greater security, reliability, efficiency and transparency by digitizing manual, paper-based processes tied to contracts, invoices and payments, with a more modern, digitally based approach.

The companies are actively engaging industry stakeholders around the world, with a focus on global access and adoption. This includes the participation of businesses of all sizes to gather the input and collaboration necessary to design a solution that increases competitiveness, reduces barriers to entry and provides value to the entire industry.

With a focus on making functionality available as early as possible, immediate next steps include identifying suitable technology solutions and engaging partners that can deliver the efficiencies of automated grain and oilseed trade execution.

About Archer Daniels Midland Company

For more than a century, the people of Archer Daniels Midland Company (NYSE: ADM) have transformed crops into products that serve the vital needs of a growing world. Today, we’re one of the world’s largest agricultural processors and food ingredient providers, with approximately 31,000 employees serving customers in more than 170 countries. With a global value chain that includes approximately 500 crop procurement locations, 270 food and feed ingredient manufacturing facilities, 44 innovation centers and the world’s premier crop transportation network, we connect the harvest to the home, making products for food, animal feed, industrial and energy uses. Learn more at www.adm.com.

About Bunge Limited

Bunge Limited (www.bunge.com, NYSE: BG) is a leading global agribusiness and food company operating in over 40 countries with approximately 32,000 employees. Bunge buys, sells, stores and transports oilseeds and grains to serve customers worldwide; processes oilseeds to make protein meal for animal feed; produces edible oil products for consumers and commercial customers in the food processing, industrial and artisanal bakery, confectionery, human nutrition and food service categories; produces sugar and ethanol from sugarcane; mills wheat, corn and rice to make ingredients used by food companies; and sells fertilizer in South America. Founded in 1818, the company is headquartered in White Plains, New York.

About Cargill

Cargill’s 155,000 employees across 70 countries work relentlessly to achieve our purpose of nourishing the world in a safe, responsible and sustainable way. Every day, we connect farmers with markets, customers with ingredients, and people and animals with the food they need to thrive. We combine 153 years of experience with new technologies and insights to serve as a trusted partner for food, agriculture, financial and industrial customers in more than 125 countries. Side-by-side, we are building a stronger, sustainable future for agriculture.

About COFCO International

With 12,000 people in 35 countries, COFCO International is the overseas agriculture business platform for COFCO Corporation, China's largest food and agriculture company. COFCO International is focused on being a leader in the global grains, oilseeds and sugar supply chains, with assets across the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific. The company trades with over 50 nations, while providing farmers unique direct access to the growing Chinese market. In 2017, COFCO International handled over 100 million tonnes of related commodities with revenues of $34bn. The company is accelerating its growth to create a world-class integrated global agriculture supply chain, anchored in China and competing globally.

About Louis Dreyfus Company

Louis Dreyfus Company is a leading merchant and processor of agricultural goods. We leverage our global reach and extensive asset network to serve our customers around the world, delivering the right products to the right location, at the right time – safely, responsibly and reliably. Our activities span the entire value chain from farm to fork, across a broad range of business lines (platforms). Since 1851 our portfolio has grown to include Oilseeds, Grains, Freight, Global Markets, Coffee, Cotton, Sugar, Rice, Dairy and Juice. We help feed and clothe some 500 million people every year by originating, processing and transporting approximately 81 million tons of products. Structured as a matrix organization of 6 geographical regions and 10 platforms, Louis Dreyfus Company is active in over 100 countries and employs approximately 17,000 people globally. For more information, visit www.ldc.com and follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Note on Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of U.S. federal securities laws, including statements regarding the anticipated development, success and benefits of the proposed digital platform. These statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will" and "expect" and similar statements. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts and involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Several factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement, including in this case the risk that the platform may not be successful or fully achieve the objectives of the participants. Further information regarding risks associated with forward-looking statements is included in Bunge Limited's and Archer Daniels Midland Company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. All statements herein are made as of the date of this press release, and the participants undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether because of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable law.

ADM
Jackie Anderson (USA)
media@adm.com

LDC
Karen Saddler (Switzerland)
media@ldc.com

Bunge
Susan Burns (USA)
news@bunge.com

Cargill
April Nelson (USA)
media@cargill.com

COFCO International
Allan Virtanen (Switzerland)
press@cofcointernational.com