Wilmar International and TGI Group Join Forces for Food Business in West Africa

Wilmar International Limited has announced that it has signed agreements with Tropical General Investments Group to merge their businesses in Nigeria and Benin. This will create a new joint venture where both companies will share ownership equally.

According to the agreements, Wilmar and TGI Group will combine their strengths in Nigeria and Benin. The new venture will cover areas like agriculture, palm oil farming, edible oils, nuts, rice, food manufacturing, and distribution. The market for these products is over $12 billion in Nigeria and Benin.

The new platform will merge well-known brands, strong processing abilities, local expertise, and wide distribution networks across West Africa. This will create a business that covers all parts of food production, from farming to processing, refining, and selling finished products. The main aim is to offer quality food and consumer goods at prices that are affordable for people in West Africa, using global knowledge alongside local manufacturing.

The new businesses will operate under a holding company in Singapore owned equally by Wilmar and TGI Group. The deal must still meet certain conditions, including regulatory approvals, and is expected to finalize by the end of 2026.

Mr. Kuok Khoon Hong, the Chairman and CEO of Wilmar, spoke about the deal. He said, "Nigeria and the Republic of Benin are key consumer markets in Africa, supported by a population of more than 260 million and sometimes experience structural deficits in both food production and distribution."

He added, "The combination of Wilmar’s integrated palm oil and specialty fats capability and its global scale in food staples & consumer goods with TGI Group’s manufacturing scale, established consumer brands and nationwide distribution platform, creates a uniquely positioned business to serve African consumers and to contribute to the long-term development of the region."

Mr. Santosh Pillai, who heads Wilmar in Africa, said, "This transaction represents a compelling strategic fit for Wilmar in Africa. TGI Group brings strong local execution capabilities, established consumer brands and a deep distribution network, which are highly complementary to Wilmar’s upstream and processing strengths as well as portfolio of trusted brands."

He continued, "Together, we are creating an integrated platform with the scale, local insight and operating depth to better serve consumers in Nigeria and the Republic of Benin to support the long-term development of the region’s food and agriculture sectors."

Mr. Cornelis G. Vink MFR, Founder and Chairman of TGI Group, noted, "For more than four decades, TGI Group has built a leading position in Nigerian food manufacturing and distribution. The combination with Wilmar’s Nigerian businesses brings together two highly complementary platforms built on delivering high quality locally manufactured food products across the sub region. This partnership will combine Wilmar’s global scale and expertise with TGI’s local knowledge to deliver innovative food solutions across Africa."

Mr. Farouk M Gumel, Vice Chairman of TGI Group, added, "By integrating Wilmar’s upstream and downstream palm oil capabilities, processing expertise, portfolio of trusted consumer brands with TGI Group’s manufacturing scale, local market expertise, established consumer brands and nationwide route-to-market, we are building a platform that will deepen domestic value addition, support smallholder farmers, create jobs and contribute meaningfully to Nigeria’s food security."