In the United States (US), Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC) has announced the construction of a soybean processing plant in Upper Sandusky, Ohio (OH) with integrated crushing, vegetable oil refining, and lecithin production and packaging capabilities.
The new plant also provides an option to participate in renewable energy feedstock markets and help meet the growing demand for biofuels.
This strategic development will further strengthen LDC’s core merchandising capabilities with additional capacity to originate and process US soy into value-added products – in this case, edible oils and lecithin, reinforcing our position as a partner to our customers as we grow our Food & Feed Solutions business established in January, said Michael Gelchie, CEO of LDC.
With construction expected to begin in early 2024, the new facility in Upper Sandusky will employ over 100 people and have an annual soy crushing capacity of 1.5 million tonnes, an annual edible (RBD) soybean oil production capacity of 320,000 tonnes, and an annual lecithin production capacity of 7,500 tonnes.
Reflecting our long-term commitment to North America as a key market for LDC, both in terms of origination and distribution, this new facility will leverage LDC’s existing regional logistics network and synergies with our other integrated oilseed processing facilities in the region: our recently expanded crushing, biodiesel refining, and glycerin and lecithin production complex in Claypool (IN), US, and our canola processing plant in Yorkton (SK), Canada, which we are also expanding, said Gordon Russell, US Head of Grains & Oilseeds at LDC.
