If you’ve never actually looked at the numbers, you might have no real idea just what big agribusiness, or BIG AG, actually amounts to here in the US. Recently released numbers from agricultural giant Archer Daniels Midland show that it suffered a 22% drop in revenue in the 4th quarter 2015. How much did a 22% drop affect their revenue? What did that steep decline translate to dollars-wise? Let’s look at the 4th quarter ADM performance —
Archer Daniels Midland Co. reported ONLY $8.03 BILLION in revenue from its agricultural-services segment (its largest) in the 4th quarter.
Archer Daniels Midland factory in Germany. Click the pic for original photo.
So if you ever wondered just how much money one of the agricultural giants pulls in, there’s a number for you — 8 BILLION DOLLARS. And that’s with the 22% drop, which means 3rd quarter revenue was over 10 BILLION DOLLARS. The profit numbers look significantly smaller of course —
Overall, the company posted earnings of $718 million, or $1.19 a share, up from $701 million, or $1.08 a share, a year prior.
Why do we mention this in the GMO Controversy? Two reasons. First, big ag is a huge player in GMO crop production. Second, the company made this surprising announcement —
[Archer Daniels Midland] announced an investment in Harvest Innovations, a producer of non-GMO, organic and gluten-free ingredients.
Thought you might find that interesting! We’ll see how that investment progresses over the next several months, and in the meantime, now you have an idea of just how big BIG AG really is.
Source for the numbers reported:
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/archer-daniels-profit-and-revenue-fall-short-2016-02-02
