'Bad deal for Sask.': NDP want province to publicly oppose potential Viterra takeover

The opposition NDP are calling on the Saskatchewan government to publicly oppose a potential merger of agriculture giants Viterra and Bunge.

In April, Canada’s Competition Bureau found that the $8.2 billion deal, which would see Missouri based Bunge acquire Regina headquartered Viterra, would likely result in anti-competitive effects and a substantial loss of rivalry in a number of grain and canola markets throughout Canada.

The federal government agency said Bunge has the ability to influence the economic behaviour of major Viterra competitor G3 Global Holdings.

Bunge owns 25 per cent of G3 Global Holdings.

During Question Period Thursday, agriculture critic and NDP MLA Trent Wotherspoon said Ag Minister David Marit needs to “find his voice” and should have condemned the proposed acquisition when questioned at committee.

“This is a bad deal for producers in our province and it shouldn’t go ahead. What’s that premier going to do to stand up for Saskatchewan?” Wotherspoon asked.

Speaking on behalf of Marit, Finance Minister Donna Harpauer said he and the entire Sask. Party recognize agriculture is the backbone of the economy.

“The minister has consulted with stakeholders about their proposed merger and he’s heard their concerns, he met with the leadership of both companies to ensure our producers feedback is being heard,” Harpauer said of Marit.

Harpauer said that Marit made a submission through the Ministry of Agriculture to the Transport Canada and Competition Bureau.

“The competition bureau addresses some of those producers’ concerns,” Harpauer said.

“Viterra and Bunge can now propose measures to address the competition bureau’s concerns and these will be examined by the bureau and these results will be provided to the transport minister and we will continue to monitor it as it goes forward,” Harpauer said, reading a statement from Marit.

Concerns over the deal have also been raised by the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) with the group’s president stating that the merger will make it tougher for grain producers to be successful.

SaskWheat and SaskBarley also supported APAS’s stance on the deal.

“I was here when the Sask. Party stood up and we all stood united against the takeover of Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan because it was the right thing to do,” Wotherspoon said, adding the Sask. Party under Scott Moe, “Ain’t what it used to be.”

Wotherspoon said APAS, SaskWheat and SaskBarley all feel that the merger could reduce incentives for Viterra to build a proposed canola crushing facility in Regina, with the increases in export basis and canola crush margins reducing producer income by an estimated $770 million annually.

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“Downtown head office jobs in Regina and good jobs all across Saskatchewan would be put at risk,” Wotherspoon said.

Harpauer reiterated that both Viterra and Bunge have the opportunity to address all concerns surrounding the merger.

“There will be a report for the minister of transport which is expected to be in June 2024, we will be letting the process move forward and watching it closely,” she said.

The report referenced by Harpauer must be completed and provided to the transport minister by June 2.

Wotherspoon reiterated his concerns over the province and the agriculture minister continuing to remain silent – questioning whether or not they have the best interest of Saskatchewan agriculture.

“It’s a bad deal, why has the ag minister been missing on this file, why was he crickets instead of standing up for Saskatchewan, is the agriculture minister for Saskatchewan or for a big multi-national conglomerate?” Wotherspoon asked.

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Premier Scott Moe responded to opposition criticism by saying if the NDP think the government won’t stand up for Saskatchewan, “They have another thing coming.”

“I can assure Saskatchewan residents that the three ag ministers we’ve had including the current one is going to have the back of our agriculture producers day in and day out,” Moe said.

“I can also assure Saskatchewan ag producers that the premier of this province and the Saskatchewan party government is going to have the back of rural Saskatchewan residents and going to have the back of all of those that are in the ag industry, whether it be primary production or value added production that we see today,” he added.

In a joint release on April 23, both Bunge and Viterra described the concerns laid out in the competition bureau report as “misplaced.”

Bunge’s shareholders approved the merger deal in late October of last year.

Both firms expect the deal to close in mid-2024 once the remaining regulatory steps are approved.

-- With files from David Prisciak.