BASF Sells Global Phorate Insecticide Product Line To American Vanguard
Product Line Generated Sales of 14 Million Euros in 2004; American Vanguard Sees Major Market Opportunities
Newport Beach, CA - American Vanguard Corporation and BASF Aktiengesellschaft, Ludwigshafen, Germany today announced that BASF sold the global Phorate insecticide product line to AMVAC Chemical Corporation, a subsidiary of American Vanguard. The product line consists of the active ingredient Phorate, the trademarks Thimet, Granutox and Geomet, the manufacturing and formulation know-how, registration rights, intellectual property rights and inventories as well as an exclusive license to use BASF's patented, closed delivery system, Lock 'N Load, in the US, Canada and Australia for Phorate.
Phorate, which generated sales of approximately EUR 14 million in 2004, was first introduced in 1954. It is registered in more than 15 countries, with the main markets in Asia Pacific and the Americas. It is used on agricultural crops, mainly potatoes, corn, cotton, rice and sugarcane, to protect against chewing and piercing-sucking insects.
Eric Wintemute, President and CEO of American Vanguard, stated, "This acquisition is important for American Vanguard on several levels. It is our largest acquisition to date, and should be a significant contributor to our sales base, with sales beginning in the fourth quarter of 2005. Furthermore, Phorate is an attractive addition to our niche product portfolio, which includes many different insecticide products. Additionally, we have identified what we believe are further market opportunities for Phorate. We continue to execute on our growth strategy of acquiring and licensing niche product lines from larger companies in our industry."
"For BASF, the divestiture is part of the continuing process of reviewing the Agricultural Products portfolio. It is obvious that some products offer limited synergy for BASF and are a better strategic fit for other, more specialized companies. This is the case with Phorate and AMVAC," says Mike Heinz, Group Vice President and Head of Global Strategic Marketing of the BASF Agricultural Products division, who will be President of the division from December 1, 2005.
Glen Johnson, Senior Vice President of AMVAC, added, "In the US, Thimet is delivered via the Lock 'N Load delivery system. We see an opportunity to bridge this technology with our successful SmartBox delivery system. This acquisition comes on the heels of our licensing agreement with BASF for the new corn herbicide, Impact which we expect to launch in the spring of 2006."
SOURCE: American Vanguard Corporation and BASF