EBRD to provide $200m to food ingredients processor Olam

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has agreed to provide a $200m loan to Singapore-headquartered food and agribusiness company Olam International. 

With more than 25,000 customers located across 60 countries, Olam International supplies food, ingredients and fibre. 

Temasek Holdings owns a 53.4% stake in Olam while Mitsubishi Corporation owns 17.4% and Kewalram Chanrai Group has 7%. Olam Management owns a 6.3% interest while other institutional investors and the public own the remaining 15.9%.

Through this loan, EBRD is boosting agribusiness value chain and trade. It will provide stable financing of the working capital needs of the company in Turkey, Egypt, Georgia, Poland and Ukraine. 

Olam will use the loan for purchasing agricultural commodities, including hazelnuts, dry dairy products, grain and onions across these countries. 

Olam’s local subsidiaries in the aforementioned countries will process, store and distribute the commodities. 

The EU and the TaiwanBusiness-EBRD Technical Cooperation Fund also agreed to offer donor support to develop new methods and processes for managing risks associated with climate, and stress testing in Egypt and Turkey. 

EBRD reportedly invested nearly €13bn in more than 740 agribusiness projects so far, with the majority (99%) being in the private sector. 

Last September, EBRD provided a loan to Isik Organic, a Turkish exporter of organic dried fruits and nuts.