Agri-business giant Cargill reduces workforce by 5% to 'realign resources'

Agribusiness giant Cargill is laying off thousands of its employees.

Cargill confirmed this week that it would be reducing its global workforce by about 5%. In a statement sent to The Associated Press on Tuesday, the food production company said that the cuts were part of a long-term strategy to strengthen Cargill's impact, which includes realigning resources.

Minnesota-based Cargill did not immediately provide further specifics around the layoffs. But a 2024 annual report from the company noted that it had more than 160,000 employees worldwide, meaning the latest job cuts would be set to impact around 8,000 workers.

As a privately-held company, Cargill doesn't regularly publish its finances publicly. A 2024 report from the company, however, notes that it operates in 70 countries and sells to 125 markets raking in some $160 billion in annual revenue. That's down from $177 billion in revenues seen the year prior.

This week's layoff announcement arrives while much of the agricultural industry continues to face dropping prices for the commodities they trade, with the costs of anything from wheat to vegetable oil coming down from record surges seen during the COVID-19 pandemic and global conflicts such as Russia's war in Ukraine. While sticker prices for consumers are still higher than they were just several years ago, that shift has added pressures on food giants like Cargill.

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 stated Tuesday. The company added that its workforce reductions are a result of a difficult decision (that) was not made lightly.

According to an internal memo seen by Bloomberg, which first reported on Cargill's layoffs Monday, Chief Executive Officer Brian Sikes told employees that the majority of these reductions will take place this year. Citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter, the outlet also reported that the job cuts won't impact Cargill's executive team, but a number of other senior leaders will be included.

Despite recent revenue declines, Forbes again named Cargill the largest private company in the US this year marking the fourth consecutive year the company has held this title, and 37th time overall since Forbes began its rankings in 1985.