US Company Bunge

News article about the Romanian agriculture – Jan 04

US company Bunge posts 75 million euros in turnover last year

ING Bank of Romania – News – Feb 14 2005

The US company Bunge (Illinois), leader of the vegetable oil market in Romania, posted 75 million euros (90 million dollars) in turnover in 2004, up by almost 40 percent as against last year, informs the Ziarul Financiar daily on February 4. As it ended the year with better results, Bunge thinks of possible acquisitions, says country manager Robert Arsene. He tells daily Ziarul Financiar that the torrent of acquisitions in the past two years on the Romanian market, both as regards factories and warehouses, is a positive signal pointing to the activity of Romanian economy. He says that the brands of the above-mentioned company, Unisol, Floriol, Muntenia, Horea and Raza Soarelui, had a healthy growth last year, based on their potential and not on price fluctuations on the market. The cumulated market share of the Bunge brands was about 40 percent. Last year Bunge invested more than 3 million dollars in improving operational activities. In 2005 too the aforementioned company will invest both in existing facilities and in acquisitions. Arsene estimates a moderate growth of oil consumption for this year. In summer 2003 Bunge bought the majority stakes of the oil factories Muntenia in Bucharest and Interoil in Oradea (western Romania). In late 2002 Bunge became the majority shareholder of the oil factory Unirea in Iasi (eastern Romania) after taking over the Cereol international group, which owned the Iasi-based factory at that time. After taking over the Cereol group, Bunge became the biggest processor of oil-bearing seeds in the world. In Romania Bunge has about 900 employees. Its main competitors are Argus in Constanta (south-eastern Romana), Cargil Romania, Ulvex at Tandarei (southern Romania), Ulerom in Vaslui (eastern Romania) and Expur at Urziceni (southern Romania).