Question Period Note: BUNGE-VITERRA MERGER
About
- Reference number:
- AAFC-2025-QP-00149
- Date received:
- Dec 11, 2025
- Organization:
- Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
- Name of Minister:
- MacDonald, Heath (Hon.)
- Title of Minister:
- Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
Issue/Question:
N/A
Suggested Response:
N/A
Background:
On August 15, 2023, Bunge Limited, a global agricultural company, and Viterra Limited, Canada’s largest grain handler, announced their intention to merge their global operations. This triggered two reviews - one by the Competition Bureau which reviewed the impact of the acquisition on competition, and one by Transport Canada which focused on public interest issues related to Canada’s transportation sector and supply chains. Both reviews were completed in the Spring of 2024. The Competition Bureau report, which was made public, raised concerns about anti-competitive effects in the grain origination and oilseed sectors and the corporate concentration that would result from the acquisition of Viterra by Bunge.
On January 14, 2025, the Government of Canada announced the approval of the acquisition with extensive conditions which aim to address competition and concentration concerns.
The merger was also subject to a series of regulatory reviews from the USA, EU, Australia, Canada, and China.
China, the final country to complete its review of the transaction, announced its approval with conditions in June 2025. The merger has passed the required regulatory reviews and has since been finalized. The merged entity is now known as Bunge Global.
Canada’s key terms and conditions included:
- Bunge’s divestiture of six grain elevators in Western Canada to maintain competitive options for farmers in the region.
- Strict and legally binding controls on Bunge’s minority ownership stake in G3, to ensure Bunge cannot influence G3’s pricing or investment decisions.
- A price protection program for certain purchasers of canola oil in Central and Atlantic Canada to safeguard fair pricing and market stability.
- Retaining Viterra’s head office in Regina for at least five years to protect Canadian jobs.
- Binding commitment from Bunge to invest at least $520 million in Canada within the next five years.
The process of finding suitable buyers for the six primary elevators located in Manitoba and Saskatchewan is currently underway. According to the agreed to terms and conditions, divestment of the identified assets must occur within four months of the merger’s closing date.
Additional Information:
• As part of the Bunge-Viterra merger, the Government of Canada established extensive conditions to protect the public interest, including for Bunge to divest six grain elevators in Western Canada.
• We believe the terms and conditions will help to ensure healthy competition, fair pricing, and fair options for Canadian farmers to market their grain.
• We look forward to the tangible benefits this partnership will bring to producers, processors, and the broader Canadian agri-food economy.