Brazil and Louis Dreyfus Company: A Historical Partnership

LDC’s story started in 1851, when Léopold Louis-Dreyfus, the son of a farmer, entered the France-Switzerland grain trade. The company consolidated its presence in Brazil in 1942, with the acquisition of Comércio e Indústrias Brasileiras (Coinbra).

Arrival in Brazil

After the death of its founder Léopold Louis-Dreyfus in 1915, a second generation of the business, led by his sons Charles and Louis, decides to expand the company’s activities to the Americas and beyond.

1942

Disembarking in Brazil

The company acquires Comércio e Indústrias Brasileiras (Coinbra), which trades coffee, citrus products, oilseeds and sugar.

1946

New Frontiers

The company’s establishes its main export offices in New York, Chicago, Winnipeg, Buenos Aires, São Paulo, Saigon, Johannesburg, Shanghai, Bombay, and Melbourne.

1974

Expansion in Oilseeds

The company starts processing soybeans at its first plant in the country, in Ponta Grossa (PR).

1979

Coming to Brazilian Tables

The proprietary Vila Velha and Valência refined soybean oil brands are launched in the domestic market.

Growing our Business

Exploring new horizons being central to the company’s history, the 1980s and 1990s see the company enter new businesses and increase its presence throughout the country.

1987

Head Office in Brazil

The company moves its regional head office to Avenida Brigadeiro Faria Lima, in São Paulo, one of the main commercial areas of the capital city.

1988

First Steps in Juice and Coffee

The company acquires Frutropic Agropecuária, in Matão (SP), making our debut in juice production, and begins trading coffee in the following year, through its office in Santos (SP).

1990

New Facilities in Brazil

The company inaugurates its grain processing unit in Jataí (GO), and new coffee operations in Espírito Santo (ES) a year later.

1996

Extending in the Value Chain

Having acquired its second juice plant, Coopercitrus Industrial Frutesp, in Bebedouro (SP) in 1993, the company begins cultivating its own fruit in orange groves, in Sao Paulo state .

Investing in the Future

After a period of consolidation, the company resumes its growth and expansion throughout the country, inaugurating new industrial units, warehouses and trading offices, and starting operations at port terminals in Brazil.

2002

Growing our Presence

The company enters a five-year period of expansion across the country. It enters the State of Minas Gerais with the inauguration of its coffee warehouse in Varginha. It builds a new soy processing plant in Alto Araguaia (MT), reinforcing its growing position in the oilseeds business. The company also starts operating its third juice plant in Engenheiro Coelho (SP), begins commercial coffee operations in Nova Venécia (ES) and opens its cotton office and warehouse in Luís Eduardo Magalhães (BA).

2008

New Assets, New Business, New Ventures

The company inaugurates its juice terminal in the Port of Santos (SP), and starts trading fertilizers in Brazil. The following year, the company enters the rice market, starts operating the Terminal Exportador do Guarujá (TEG) export terminal in the Port of Santos (SP), and establishes a grain origination joint venture: Amaggi & LD Commodities.

2010

Commitment to Best Business Practices

As part of our vision to work toward a sustainable future, the company signs the UN Global Compact: a set of ten business principles covering human and worker rights, environmental principles and the fight against corruption.

A New Chapter

The company continues to write its story in the country, consolidating its presence through new partnerships and acquisitions, with a focus on sustainability.

2011

Strengthening our Position

The company begins operating fertilizer-mixing units with the acquisition of Macrofértil in Brazil, and becomes the country’s leading cottonseed processor with the purchase of a Maeda Group unit in Itumbiara (GO). Through the Amaggi & LD Commodities joint venture, it wins a bid for a lot to build a bulk terminal at the Port of Itaqui (MA).

2012

Full Steam Expansion

The company buys its fourth citrus juice plant in Paranavaí (PR), inaugurates a coffee warehouse in Nova Venécia (ES), begins operating a cotton warehouse in Cubatão (SP), and purchases a soybean warehouse in Rio Verde (GO). It also starts building another warehouse in Jataí (GO) and acquires a new fleet of barges and pushers for the Tietê-Paraná waterway, increasing logistics capacity.

2014

A New Market

The company acquires Kowalski Alimentos, with two units – one in Apucarana (PR) and another in Rio Verde (GO). This marks its entry into the processed corn market with products for both industry and end consumers, and into the pet food and fish feed market.

2015

Investing in Logistics

The company wins a joint bid to operate the solid bulk terminal at the port of Santos (SP) for 25 years. It completes the expansion of its coffee warehouse in Nova Venécia (ES), builds new grain warehouses in the states of Mato Grosso, Goiás and Paraná, and resumes metals trading. The following year, we initiate studies for a sustainable logistics project in the state of Pará.

A New Name for a New Era

Across the globe, the company enters a new era in which we grow through trust-based partnerships, leveraging our ability to deliver a full, high-level service focused on our customers and not just on a product or commodity. The company is renamed Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC) to reflect this commitment.

2017

Milestones in the Country

The company celebrates its 75-year presence in Brazil, and sees several important business milestones: the upgrade of our oilseeds processing unit in Paraguaçu Paulista (SP) and soybean oil bottling line in Jataí (GO), warehouse expansions in Mato Grosso and Goiás, and the creation of “LDC Transportes”: a company for the direct hire of domestic road haulage for grains and oilseeds.

2018

Sailing New Waters

The company starts fluvial fleet operations along the Tapajós river, in the north of the country, and obtains a license to start building a transshipment terminal on the river.

2019

Expanding in Minas Gerais

In a year that marks LDC’s 30 years in the coffee business, the company inaugurates its new coffee warehouse in Matipó, adding storage capacity closer to key producing regions to facilitate market access for farmers.

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