POSCO International Signs Business Agreement with Bartlett and Company on August 18
On August 18 (local time), POSCO International signed a business agreement with Bartlett and Company, a U.S. grain company, in Kansas City, United States. The company plans to expand its annual grain trading volume to 4 million tons by 2027, aiming not only to drive its own growth but also to contribute to South Korea's food security.
To achieve this, the two companies agreed to diversify both the types and origins of grains, expanding beyond North America to include Latin America and the Black Sea region. They will also explore joint entry into demand markets such as Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. POSCO International's strategy is to strengthen its competitiveness in sourcing and trading U.S. grains while solidifying its position as an importer in the domestic grain market.
Bartlett, established in 1907, is a U.S. grain company. Based in the Midwest, it operates procurement, distribution, and processing businesses for grains such as corn, wheat, and soybeans, and has established a business presence in the U.S. domestic market as well as in Latin American regions including Mexico.
Through this agreement, POSCO International is expected to help enhance South Korea's competitiveness in grain procurement amid growing uncertainty in the global food market. With South Korea's grain self-sufficiency rate below 20%, and over 16 million tons of grain imported annually, diversifying supply chains has become increasingly important.
Posco International signed a business agreement with Bartlett in the United States on the 18th (local time). (From left in the photo) Gyein Lee, President of Posco International, and Joe Griffiths, President of Bartlett, are posing for a commemorative photo. Photo by Posco International
Since entering the food business in earnest in 2015, POSCO International has steadily expanded its business scale. In 2025, the company plans to handle 5.5 million tons annually, of which about 2 million tons are expected to be supplied to the domestic market.
In the grain sector, the company intends to increase its handling volume in the United States, a major grain-producing country, while gradually enhancing its procurement competitiveness in South America, which has recently emerged as the world's largest grain export market. Additionally, POSCO International plans to proactively review its grain business in Ukraine to ensure early normalization of its Ukrainian grain terminal after the war, thereby securing a global supply chain spanning North America, the Black Sea, and South America.
In the palm oil sector, POSCO International operates a 30,000-hectare palm plantation in Indonesia and will complete a palm oil refinery with an annual capacity of 500,000 tons in the second half of this year. The company aims to establish an integrated business system covering everything from palm plantations to refined oil production by securing additional plantations, especially as palm oil is gaining attention as a raw material for biofuel.
POSCO International's strategy is to establish a system capable of handling 10 million tons of food annually by 2030, thereby growing into a global food business operator. The company expects this will contribute not only to its own growth but also to national food security.
A POSCO International representative stated, "In a situation where uncertainty in the global food market is increasing, strengthening our presence in grain-producing countries is essential to secure procurement and price competitiveness. Using this agreement as a foothold, we will expand our global network connecting North and South America, and further develop our food business foundation by linking it with our existing investments such as the Indonesian palm business and the Ukrainian grain terminal."
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