Bartlett to buy Ceres Global Ag Corp

Ceres has operations in Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

Bartlett is headquartered in Kansas City with locations in the American Midwest and East Coast, and Mexico. It is part of the Savage group of companies. Screencap via bartlettco.com

WESTERN PRODUCER – Kansas City-based grain buyer Bartlett has agreed to buy Ceres Global Ag Corp.

“Bartlett’s acquisition of Ceres is vindication of the strategy we set out to achieve 12 years ago, which is to build the company into one of North America’s leading merchandisers of durum, oats, spring wheat and canola,” said Ceres board chair Jim Vanasek in a news release.

Ceres is a Minnesota-based grain buyer and logistics company with locations in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. It also owns Delmar Commodities, based in Winkler, Man., and Jordan Mills in Roland, Man.

Bartlett is headquartered in Kansas City with locations in the American Midwest and East Coast, and Mexico. It is part of the Savage group of companies.

“We see incredible potential in combining our networks,” said Savage president and CEO Jeff Roberts.

Ceres’ network and assets are a “natural complement to the Bartlett business,” said Bartlett executive director Bob Knief in a separate news release.

Its assets include a combined grain and oilseed storage of about 45 million bushels.

“We see incredible potential in combining our networks

Bartlett has agreed to purchase Ceres at US$4.50 per share, which would value the sale at roughly US$140 million. The transaction is subject to court approval and closing conditions.

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Geralyn Wichers

Digital editor, news and national affairs.

Geralyn graduated from Red River College's Creative Communications program in 2019 and launched directly into agricultural journalism with the Manitoba Co-operator. Her enterprising, colourful reporting has earned awards such as the Dick Beamish award for current affairs feature writing and a Canadian Online Publishing Award, and in 2023 she represented Canada in the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists' Alltech Young Leaders Program. Geralyn is a co-host of the Armchair Anabaptist podcast, cat lover, and thrift store connoisseur.