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Storied French Cocoa Trader Touton Is Said to Be Put Up for Sale
(Bloomberg) -- A French trader of cocoa, coffee and spices, with origins dating back to 1848, has been put up for sale after profit jumped more than 1,000%, according to people with knowledge of the plan.
Touton SA, based in Bordeaux, has hired Dutch bank ING Groep NV to lead the process, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private. The move comes after the trader benefited from a historic rally in cocoa, with prices almost tripling last year after surging more than 60% in 2023.
A number of trading companies expressed interest in Touton, but there's no certainty a deal will be reached, the people said. The French company says it's a top six cocoa trader and among the top 10 in coffee.
Touton didn't immediately respond to requests for comment, while ING declined to comment.
Reuters earlier reported that Hartree was in talks to acquire Touton. Hartree didn't immediately comment on the report.
Touton is part-owned by Chief Executive Officer Patrick de Boussac, who took the helm in 1992. Originally a cocoa and natural ingredients trader, it later expanded to coffee and cocoa processing and grew globally, opening offices in places such as Vietnam, Dubai and New York.
The company reported net income of about €128 million ($149 million) in the year through March 2024, up from just €11.4 million a year earlier, its latest public accounts showed.
Touton profited from a surge in cocoa prices, with the global market posting a record shortage of 560,000 tons in the season that ended last September, the company said in its annual report. That added to shortages from the two previous years.
The firm attributed the poor numbers to factors including prolonged rains, swollen shoot disease and an aging tree stock.
Output in Ivory Coast, the top producer, was also affected by a long-term shift in land use, with some growers replacing cocoa trees with more profitable palm plantations, Touton said. In neighboring Ghana, many farms were taken over by illegal gold miners. The two West African countries account for more than 60% of global output.
Natapol Holdings Pte Ltd. is Touton's biggest shareholder, according to its accounts. CEO de Boussac owns just over 14%, and is also a director of Astonford Holdings which holds almost 19%.
--With assistance from Alfred Cang.
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