Cargill and Viterra’s dispute over the Joe White Maltings sale began in 2014 – File photo

Cargill Australia has stressed its commitment tohonesty and transparency in its relationships with customers, following a report this week about the alleged historical practices of its subsidiary Joe White Maltings (JWM).

Brews News this week reported that Cargill and JWM’s former owner Viterra Malt were scheduled to meet in court on May 7, the culmination of their long running dispute over the JWM deal.

Cargill previously declined to comment on the proceedings. A company spokesperson has since supplied the following statement:

“Cargill notes the recent article about its litigation with Glencore and Viterra concerning historical practices in the JWM malting business.

“As your article notes, Cargill’s allegations include that under the ownership of Viterra and Glencore, the business supplied malt to customers that did not comply with specifications and contractual requirements. Customers were not informed of any deviations against their specifications.

“These practices were not disclosed by Glencore or Viterra to Cargill when it acquired the business in 2013.

“Under its ownership, Cargill immediately stopped all such practices. Cargill’s JWM has always supplied its customers with malt that complied with their requirements and agreements.

“The litigation has been issued to recover the substantial loss suffered by Cargill by reason of the historical practices.

“Cargill prioritises and values honesty and transparency in the relationships with our customers. We remain committed to ensuring our customers are supplied with premium malt in accordance with their requirements so as to support them in their own production needs.

“Cargill is confident in the outcome of the proceedings.”

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