Posco International expands into U.S. grain market

Posco International will enter the U.S. grain market through a joint investment with Bartlett and Company, aiming to handle 5 million tons of grain annually by 2030.

Posco International CEO Jeong Tak, left, and Kirk W. Aubry, president and CEO of Savage, the parent of Bartlett and Company, pose for a photo during a joint venture framework agreement signing ceremony held in Kansas City on Monday. [POSCO INTERNATIONAL]

Posco International, a Seoul-based trading company, is entering the U.S. grain market through a joint investment with a local agribusiness company.

Posco International said Tuesday that it signed a joint venture framework agreement with Bartlett and Company, a Kansas City-based grain supplier. With the signing of the agreement, Posco International will invest in a soybean processing facility currently under construction by Bartlett in the United States within this year, and establish a joint venture for grain supply with the company.

Bartlett operates 15 grain terminals in the United States, and handles approximately 10 million tons of grains a year.

Posco International, whose key areas of business include commodities trading, aims to establish a supply system that handles 5 million tons of grain a year by 2030, by building a food value chain in the United States and exporting U.S. grain.

Posco International currently handles 8 million tons of grain per year, about 10 times the volume it had traded in 2015 when the company first entered the grain business.

The signing ceremony was held on Monday, attended by Posco International CEO Jeong Tak and Kirk W. Aubry, president and CEO of Savage, the parent of Bartlett and Company, in Kansas City.

BY SHIN HA-NEE, YONHAP [shin.hanee@joongang.co.kr]