To Expand Annual Grain Trading to 4 Million Tons by 2027, Strengthening Global Agribusiness Foundation
On the 18th (local time), POSCO INTERNATIONAL (CEO Lee Kye-In) signed a business agreement in Kansas City, U.S., with Bartlett and Company (hereinafter referred to as “Bartlett”), a U.S.-based grain company.
The signing ceremony was attended by POSCO INTERNATIONAL CEO Lee Kye-In, Bartlett CEO Joe Griffith, and other officials from both companies. The two companies agreed to expand grain trading to 4 million tons annually by 2027.
Under the agreement, the companies will diversify grain types and sourcing regions from mainly North America to include Central and South America as well as the Black Sea region, while also exploring joint entry into markets with high demand, such as Central and South America, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. In particular, POSCO INTERNATIONAL seeks to strengthen its business competitiveness in sourcing and trading U.S. grains while solidifying its position as an importer in the South Korean grain market.
Its partner, Bartlett, is a U.S. grain company established in 1907. Based in the U.S. Midwest, it is engaged in the procurement, distribution, and processing of grains such as corn, wheat, and soybeans, with a strong business foundation in the U.S. domestic market and regions such as Mexico in Central and South America.
This agreement is expected to strengthen competitiveness in grain procurement amid growing uncertainties in the global agro market. With South Korea’s grain self-sufficiency rate less than 20%, the country relies on imports for at least 16 million tons of grain annually, making the diversification of supply chain increasingly important.
Since fully entering the agribusiness in 2015, POSCO INTERNATIONAL has steadily expanded its operations. In 2025, the company plans to handle 5.5 million tons of grain annually, with approximately 2 million tons to be supplied to the domestic market in South Korea.
In the grain sector, this agreement will increase importing volumes from the U.S., a major grain-producing country, while gradually boosting procurement competitiveness in South America, which has recently become the world’s largest grain exporter. Additionally, POSCO INTERNATIONAL plans to secure a global supply chain spanning North America, the Black Sea, and South America by proactively reviewing its grain business in Ukraine to enable the early restoration of terminal operations once the war ends.
In the palm oil sector, the company is operating a 30,000-hectare plantation in Indonesia and will complete construction of a palm oil refinery with an annual capacity of 500,000 tons in the second half of this year. As palm oil gains wider attention as a biofuel feedstock, the company plans to secure more plantations to establish an integrated business system covering the entire value chain, from cultivation to refined oil production.
Through these efforts, the company expects to build a stable foundation in the highly competitive global grain market and establish an annual food-handling capacity of 10-million tons by 2030, positioning itself as a global agribusiness operator. The company also expects these business expansions to contribute to national food security.
“In the face of growing uncertainties in the global agro market, strengthening our presence in grain-producing countries is essential for securing procurement and price competitiveness,” a POSCO INTERNATIONAL official stated. “Using this agreement as a foothold, we will expand our global network connecting North and South America while further developing our agribusiness foundation by leveraging existing investments, such as the Indonesia palm oil business and the Ukraine grain terminal.”
▲ POSCO INTERNATIONAL Signs Business Agreement with U.S.-Based Bartlett. From left: POSCO INTERNATIONAL CEO Lee Kye-In and Bartlett CEO Joe Griffith