Viterra Inc. VT-T was once a prairie grain co-operative with a glorious past and a troubled present. Having shed much of its historical baggage, this emerging powerhouse is now reaching into the opposite corner of the world in a bid to become a global agribusiness titan. Mayo Schmidt, Viterra's president and chief executive officer, sees his firm's $1.4-billion proposed takeover of an Australian barley processor, ABB Grain Ltd., as the first stage in a growth offensive worldwide.

The agricultural sector will undergo dramatic consolidation as it emerges from the economic funk of the past six to eight months, Mr. Schmidt maintains - and Regina-based Viterra, formerly the Saskatchewan Wheat Pool, will be among the most aggressive buyers.

Mr. Schmidt is looking elsewhere in Australia and the Asia-Pacific, as well as in North America and other regions. As takeover chances arise, "someone is going to get to those, and we're committed to get to them first, " he told a conference call yesterday. "First-mover advantage is always the place you want to be."

Viterra yesterday unveiled details of a package of cash and shares, including a special dividend, being offered to shareholders of ABB, one of Australia's major grain handlers and its biggest processor and exporter of malt barley.

Mr. Schmidt said: "We believe in being architects of our own future, and not simply reacting to the market. That's what we did in Canada, and we will take the same view here with ABB."

Mr. Schmidt was alluding to the past 15 years as his company has evolved from a venerable but challenged co-operative to the publicly traded Viterra.

The company has diversified operations in grain handling, grain and canola processing, and retail farm products.

Mr. Schmidt launched the Saskatchewan Wheat Pool's 2007 takeover bid for Agricore United, which itself had been formed from the Manitoba and Alberta wheat pools. After splitting Agricore's assets with a competing bidder, Winnipeg's Richardson family, Mr. Schmidt and his team integrated the units into a newly christened Viterra.

That experience will be useful in taking over 70-year-old ABB (the former Australian Barley Board), which shares a similar culture and history, having been privatized in 1999. "We are very good at bringing organizations together," Mr. Schmidt said.

ABB also faces opportunities resulting from the recent deregulation of wheat exports from Australia. That experience could be useful if Canadian wheat and barley markets were to undergo future deregulation, as well.

But Mr. Schmidt and his ABB counterpart, managing director Michael Iwaniw, will have to bring the same persuasive skills to bear on farmer-shareholders as Viterra did in Canada during its transformation from a co-op.

In this case, the key players are 11,000 growers of barley, mostly in the state of South Australia, who own a critical 45 per cent of ABB. The deal is contingent on winning 75 per cent of votes cast at a shareholders' meeting by 50 per cent of those casting votes.

Viterra's bid appears timely, with stock markets depressed and ABB reeling from several years of drought conditions in Australia. But analysts in the conference call suggested there may be resistance from some farmers, who can see an upside in ABB's future earnings.

The Viterra-ABB response is that the farmers can still participate in the combined company's growth by taking payment in shares.

Analysts also questioned the company on the still-sketchy details of $30-million (Australian) a year in projected synergies to be fully realized after three years of amalgamation. The company says the bottom-line boost would come more from revenue growth than from cost savings.

But the biggest touted win is unquantifiable - global clout. The new company would be one of the leading export players in wheat, canola and barley.

Mr. Schmidt talked a lot about the potential for "global logistics arbitrage," including such tools as centralized booking of ships, the use of much larger ships and efficiencies in moving products around the world, including into key Asian markets.

In future deals, Mr. Schmidt indicated he will look to bolster grain-processing operations to complement strengths in grain handling and in retail agri-products, such as fertilizer. "We're going to continue to focus on businesses that process the grains and oil seeds that we collect."

He also indicated that a strong balance sheet, with ample cash and low debt leverage, means the company should be ready to buy more.

But with each such deal, the cherished Saskatchewan institution further outgrows its roots in the province. After the proposed merger with ABB, it would still have its registered head office in Regina, but the executive office is now in Calgary and its major barley centre would be in Adelaide.