Australian Wheat Board
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| Subsidiary | |
| Founded | 1 July 1999 |
| Headquarters | Melbourne, Australia |
| Parent | Cargill Australia |
| Divisions | 3 |
| Website | http://www.awb.com.au/ |
AWB Limited was a major grain marketing organisation based in Australia. It was a government body known as the Australian Wheat Board until 1 July 1999, when the AWB was transformed into a private company, owned by wheat growers. In 2010, AWB was acquired by the Canadian firm Agrium, and in 2011 the company changed its name to Agrium Asia Pacific Limited. In 2011, Cargill Australia acquired the AWB Commodity Management business from Agrium. This follows the ACCC's decision on March 17, 2011 not to oppose the acquisition.
The AWB was founded in the late 1930s, to regulate the wheat market after the excesses of the Great Depression. The single desk dates to this period. This type of arrangement was not unique to Australia, as the Canadian Wheat Board was created in 1935 in a similar fashion (but its history dates back to an earlier wheat marketing board created during the Great War, and also includes the experience of cooperative wheat pools during the 1920s).
For much of its early history, it was a government-run and owned company. However, from July 1999, its board was restructured into a private company. It offered "class A" shares to those who meet its definition of "growers" and who had the ability to elect the majority of its board and chairperson, and from August 2001, 'class B' were publicly traded on the . In 2008, constitutional amendments were passed. Despite resistance from several wheat lobbies and industry groups, it consolidated ownership of AWB into one type of share, giving growers no special consideration. This change was proposed by the AWB management as necessarily to having a simpler, lower-risk business model.
Since privatisation, AWB has grown to incorporate a number of subsidiaries to diversify its income away from its wheat exports. Its subsidiary businesses include GrainFlow to manage collection of grain from farmers to ports, companies to ship the grain overseas to customers, and Landmark rural services.
By its own estimation, AWB is now a "grower owned and controlled company".
AWB Limited was a holding company owning a number of subsidiaries. Its shares were freely traded on the Australian Stock Exchange.
AWB Limited had a number of subsidiaries. Some of these subsidiaries existed due to legislative requirements relating to the operation of the single desk; others exist for the purpose of controlling credit risk. As of early 2006, they were:
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