Nidera was created in Rotterdam , the Netherlands in 1920, by a group of grain merchants, who correctly envisioned that the city would build a port there, which would be Europe's main import and export gateway.

But in that same decade, around 1929, part of the group of founders emigrated to Argentina , where they created, in 1929, Nidera Argentina SA, and established their own grain exporter.

Its name is an acronym for the main squares of the granary market at that time:

• N ederland ( Netherlands )
• I ndië ( Indias Orientales Neerlandesas )
• D erm ( Alemania )
• E ngeland ( Inglaterra )
• R ussia ( Rusia )
• A RGENTINA ( Argentina )

Over the years, the company built a global business network, with a presence in 22 countries,  based on independence, efficiency and commercial loyalty, which gave it the recognition of being a pioneer company in the development of new business flows. From the 1960s Nidera acquired a strong position in the vegetable oil industry. In the 1990s and the beginning of the following century, it spread throughout the United States , the Black Sea area, and Asia.

The Argentine entity established itself as the largest originator and processor of grains and oilseeds, and through the 1990s as the leader of the rapid growth of agricultural technology in the country. 

Business

Industrial plant dedicated to the production of vegetable oils, located in the town of Saforcada , near the city of Junín , Argentina .

In the international business environment of the global Grupo Nidera, it trades a total of almost 20 million tons of grains, oilseeds, vegetable oils, foods derived from oilseeds, livestock feed and bio-energy products, as well as ocean freight. 

Unlike other similar global companies, Nidera does not report on its business volumes or physical operations. On the other hand, since it is not a company that trades its shares on the Stock Exchange , there is no public information for investors.

In Argentina, regarding the trading of cereals and oilseeds in 2006, Nidera ranked sixth in the ranking of exporters, with a volume equivalent to 10% of the total country. The process of concentration in the business, which raised players such as Cargill , Bunge or Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM), displaced Nidera, still maintaining its market share.

Another business unit is the milling (called crushing in the jargon ) of oilseeds for refined oils. In Argentina, it has not strongly joined the biofuel fever , fueled by government subsidies for the installation of the industry, which allows high retention differentials .

Finally, as the final link in the production chain, Nidera has its refined oils division. This division sells both bulk and packaged oil, which has led it in recent years to be the main exporter of packaged oils in Argentina. The export operation of Nidera Aceites Refinados has clients in more than 30 countries, among which the main supermarket chains in the world stand out, to whom it supplies both its own brands and its private brands. Nidera operates in several countries with its brands, among which Springfield, Campo Grande, Clarina, and Legítimo stand out. With regard to the Argentine market, Nidera owns a high percentage of that market under its “Legitimo” brand.

In the financial aspects, Nidera organized a reciprocal guarantee society called Aval Rural, with which it also launched trusts to finance the sowing ( sown ) for its clients .

The company has also ventured into the Latin American seed markets, for example in Uruguay and Brazil , with two companies (Nidera Uruguay SA and Nidera Sementes). In the United States since 2001 is called "Nidera Inc." and has a turnover of 4,100 million employing 594 employees. 

Product development

The company was positioning itself in an ascending way in the area of ​​supplies, with two pillars that stand out in importance:

Seeds : With three major events:

1. The push for higher-yielding semi-toothed maize in a hybrid market that tended to be dominated by flint .
2. The development and launch of glyphosate resistant soybeans , in parallel with the United States (mid -1990s ). In 1989 the company had bought the Argentine subsidiary of the Asgrow seed company.
3. The irruption in the wheat seed market with French genetics (Baguette).

Although there are no institutional statistics of the seed market, it is assumed that Nidera leads the soybean market (it would have more than half) and that of sunflower hybrids, and that it would be third in wheat (behind Klein and Buck) and second in corn , behind Monsanto (Dekalb).

Agrochemicals : The company has also developed strong market agrochemicals , in the area of nutrition ( fertilizers ) as crop protection ( herbicides , fungicides , etc.) 

In Argentina, Nidera is very committed to research and development (R&D) of seeds and in the manipulation of a wide range of contributions to agriculture. 

Criticism

Relations with public powers

The Federal Administration of Public Revenues (AFIP) of Argentina intimidated the company in 2010 for a tax evasion of $ 260 million pesos .  The company declared on its official website that it has complied with all its tax obligations with the AFIP on time. 

Social responsability

At the end of 2010, a raid [ 10 ] by the Ministry of Labor of the Province of Buenos Aires carried out in San Pedro , Province of Buenos Aires ( Argentina ), revealed that 130 people worked in conditions of slavery, 30 of them were minors. of age who did not know where they were. 

The company Nidera Argentina, made a release on its official website in which it denies that the people were in subhuman conditions. According to the company, the conditions in which the workers were found were specified in the law . Also in his defense he says that the food consumed was not deducted from his salary. 

Between January 22 and 23, 2011, the Ministry of Labor of the province of Buenos Aires carried out new raids in Mar del Plata , Miramar and Lobería . Ministry sources indicated that the fields belong to Nidera. [ 13 ] In the following days, the Ministry of Labor of the Province of Formosa also intimidated the company due to the irregular situation of workers from that province in the aforementioned raid.