Bulker chartering giant Cargill is making thousands of staff redundant as agricultural commodity prices come under pressure.
The company said in a statement that about 5% of jobs will go worldwide.
Reuters reported this is about 8,000 staff, out of a total of more than 160,000.
The group said the redundancies were part of a long-term strategy “to strengthen Cargill’s impact”. This includes realigning resources.
Cargill describes itself as one of the largest providers of bulk ocean shipping services.
Staff handle thousands of voyages a year, moving millions of metric tons of dry and wet cargo in and out of the world’s busiest ports.
The group is also a keen proponent of shipping decarbonisation, with a focus on wind propulsion.
A spokesperson told TradeWinds the group is not sharing specific breakdowns of those impacted by office location, business or geography.
The Minnesota-based giant released a 2024 financial report earlier this year that said it operates in 70 countries and sells to 125 markets.
Revenue was $160bn, down from $177bn in the previous year.
AP reported that the agriculture sector continues to face dropping prices.
A changing world
The cost of products ranging from wheat to vegetable oil have come off peaks seen during the pandemic.
“As the world around us changes, we are committed to transforming even faster to deliver for our customers and fulfil our purpose of nourishing the world,” Cargill said.
The company added that its workforce reductions are a result of a “difficult decision (that) was not made lightly”.
Bloomberg originally broke the news, citing an internal memo in which chief executive Brian Sikes told employees that the majority of the cuts will take place this year.
The news agency said the executive team will not be affected, but a number of other senior leaders will be included.
Forbes says Cargill is the largest private company in the US.
