Huber acquires specialty plant nutrition producer Biolchim

J.M. Huber Corporation, a U.S. specialty engineered materials manufacturing conglomerate, has signed a binding agreement to acquire full control of the Biolchim Group, which specializes in the production of biostimulants for crop improvement, from NB Renaissance and Chequers Capital.

The goal of Huber AgroSolutions, headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, is to become a leader in the formulation of sustainable, high-performance agricultural products worldwide. The acquisition of the fast-growing Biolchim Group, with its broad offering of biostimulant and specialty nutritional products, is a firm step in that direction.

The Biolchim Group has its principal base of operations in Bologna, Italy and is a producer and distributor of specialty plant nutrition and biostimulants. The closing of the sale is expected to occur by the end of 2022 and is subject to customary closing conditions, including approval of foreign direct investment in Italy.

The acquisition involves all Biolchim Group companies, including Biolchim S.p.A, Cifo, Ilsa S.p.A, Matécsa Kft, and West Coast Marine-Bio Processing Corp. The Biolchim Group has eight production plants worldwide and its products - biostimulants, trace elements and water-soluble, liquid and foliar fertilizers - are present in more than 70 countries.

Biolchim Group will become part of Huber Engineered Materials (HEM), a company within Huber's portfolio of businesses, and will form the basis of HEM's Huber AgroSolutions (HAS) business unit that currently includes Miller Chemical & Fertilizer (Miller), with its acquisition completed in April 2019.

Under NB Renaissance and Chequers, which took over Biolchim in 2016, the company has doubled in size, with revenues close to US $140 million in 2021 and this year 2022 has also recorded double-digit growth.

In the last five years Biolchim has expanded internationally by developing its overseas sales structure, with a complementary distribution network in Latin America and selected countries in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. 

The deal, estimated to be worth US $610 million, comes at a time when world fertilizer prices have risen sharply due to concerns that the conflict between major exporters Russia and Ukraine could lead to food shortages.

“La visión de Huber AgroSolutions es convertirse en un formulador líder de productos agrícolas sostenibles y de alto rendimiento a nivel mundial”, comentaron desde la compañía al anunciar el acuerdo. David Riley, vicepresidente senior y director general de Huber AgroSolutions señaló que “estoy entusiasmado y lleno de energía por esta oportunidad de combinar dos negocios de éxito, Miller y el Grupo Biolchim”.

Leonardo Valenti, CEO of the Biolchim Group since 2008 and a pioneer in plant nutrition, will continue to lead the next phase of growth and the integration process, taking advantage of the synergy potential of the strategic combination of both companies.

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