History and Values / ED&F Man Liquid Products

ED&F Man Liquid Products has a history going back almost 100 years. The company has two core elements; one operating across Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia which grew from the acquisition of Schuurmans & van Ginneken (SvG) in 1985, the other from the acquisition of Westway Trading Corporation in 1992. Together we provide worldwide coverage and offer global solutions to our customers.

SvG

SvG was founded in 1920 when Messrs Schuurmans & van Ginneken formed a partnership to trade in sugar, molasses, coffee and cocoa.

The company flourished and, by the 1950s it specialized in molasses – building trucks, river barges and storage facilities to handle this liquid co-product of sugar production. While much of the molasses was destined for use in animal feed, the company was also actively involved in developing its use in the production of materials such as alcohol, baker’s yeast and lysine. It also developed feed mill equipment which revolutionized the use of molasses in animal feeds. Such innovation led to the steadily increasing use of molasses in Europe and stimulated trade worldwide. As demand grew, SvG developed year-round availability by sourcing cane molasses from Africa, Latin America and the Far East. Alongside this growth, its trading and distribution operations spread throughout the main European markets and further afield.

Westway Trading Corporation originated in the 1940s, starting as Industrial Molasses Company in the Northeast as a family-owned molasses trading business. Since then, Westway has evolved from a simple molasses business supplying into the liquid animal feed industry to a complex liquid products manufacturing and bulk liquid storage business in collaboration with ED&F Man. Following an initial strategic partnership in the early 1990s, Westway came under full ownership of ED&F Man in 1995. Under the umbrella of ED&F Man, Westway followed a path of growth and diversification, making a number of strategic investments in bulk liquid storage capacity and liquid feed manufacturing capabilities including feed block manufacture. Westway has successfully expanded its geographic footprint by growing the business organically and through acquisitions. With the acquisition of the Cargill Molasses business in 1997 and the purchase of Tate & Lyle PLC’s United Molasses Company in 2002, Westway has expanded its operations to included 28 manufacturing facilities in North America.

All ED&F Man’s molasses activities were re-branded into ED&F Man Liquid Products in 2007, emphasizing the synergies between the molasses business and other activities in the group.

And what comes next?

Combining a long and ground-breaking history with an ambition and a vision to take us forward, we will continue to address the challenges and needs of our customers, developing, adopting and utilising industry leading standards in every aspect of our business.

Values and Commitment

In MLP we value relationships with our customers, suppliers, service providers and other stakeholders who want sustainable products and supply chain solutions. We target the highest standards with respect to product quality and service and take extra measures to ensure these standards. We are fully committed to the health and safety of our employees and all other stakeholders, promoting impact projects and other community support programs in the places we conduct business. We also strive to play a role in environmental solutions.

Respect

We recognise each other’s differences, valuing the rich diversity of our workforce and our customers. We seek out alternative views and value all contributions, aiming to build positive and long-lasting partnerships based on trust and respect.

We seek to protect the environment and enhance the prosperity and wellbeing of the communities in which we work. We collaborate and communicate openly and honestly.

Integrity

We create partnerships built on teamwork, trust, and reliability. We challenge what we believe to be wrong and champion fair, honest and ethical business practices.

We operate robust risk management, and we keep our social and environmental responsibilities at the core of what we do.

Meritocracy

We believe that we will be successful if we have motivated employees who receive fair rewards for their efforts.

Employees have an equal opportunity to build a long-term career at ED&F Man. An individual’s progression and reward are based on achievements and ability, not position or status.

Leadership is selected on the basis of track record and the capacity to develop others.

Client Focus

We strive to build lasting partnerships with our customers and aim to exceed their expectations by creating additional value.

We are a reliable, innovative, and flexible partner wherever our customers choose to work with us.

We are ‘as good as our word’ and can be trusted to perform, something that our customers value in an increasingly uncertain world.

Our capacity to construct comprehensive solutions based on deep commodities and financial expertise is valuable to our customers as they seek to maximise their own profitability and mitigate complex global risk factors.

Entrepreneurship

We act upon opportunities, creating and championing new business ideas and hold ourselves accountable for their success.

We constantly seek ways to be more efficient and competitive, challenging the status quo. We create new ideas and build solutions that inspire others to do the same. We take responsibility for turning our ideas into reality. We learn from our mistakes and are determined to improve and succeed.