OREANDA-NEWS. April 02, 2012. The world population increased from some 2.5 billion in 1950 to more than 7 billion in October 2011. This tremendous population growth has occurred over a period of only 60 years and will increase further in the future. Accordingly, demand for grain will also increase. In particular wheat, one of the major three grains in the world, is processed into a range of staple foods, such as bread, spaghetti, udon noodles, and chapatti, and a total of 650 million tonnes of wheat is consumed across the world per year, including wheat used as feed for livestock such as chickens and pigs.

Australia accounts for about 13% of the world's wheat exports. In the country, a total of about 35 million tonnes of wheat, barley and rapeseed are grown annually, of which wheat, produced across the country, accounts for about 70%. Of the wheat production, about 15 million tonnes are exported mainly to the Asian market, where the population is increasing, and exports exceed the amount of wheat domestically consumed in Australia.

Recognizing the potential of Australia as the "world's kitchen" ahead of others, in January 2005 Sumitomo Corporation acquired 50% of the shares of the Australia-based grain storage and distribution company Australian Bulk Alliance (ABA) to become the first foreign company to own grain business infrastructure in the country. Subsequently in 2010 Sumitomo Corporation acquired a 50% equity stake in Emerald Group Australia and made ABA its 100% subsidiary. By establishing an upstream value chain from the collection of wheat in the inland areas through to export from the port, Sumitomo Corporation has been steadily increasing the export of wheat to consumer countries, especially in Asia. In 2012, the company has taken one more step forward: it has decided to integrate Emerald and ABA to expand its grain business.