AGCO Agrees to Buy Lely’s Forage Business

AGCO Corporation says it has reached an agreement in principle to acquire the forage division of Lely Group. Lely’s forage lineup includes mowers, tedders, rakers, balers, loader wagons, and other grass equipment.

The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2017, subject to regulatory approvals.

“The integration of Lely’s industry-leading competence in hay and forage technology will further strengthen AGCO’s full line product offering,” says Martin Richenhagen, AGCO’s chairman, president and CEO.

Lely’s production of dairy equipment will continue in the existing factories in Holland, the U.S. and Germany.

Lely CEO Alexander van der Lely says the company intends to focus entirely on innovations in “robotisation and sensor/data systems” for dairy farmers.

 “Over the last 15 years,” he said, “these product groups have grown into a successful activity for Lely, with a great deal of potential for the future.”

The acquisition would eliminate 95 production jobs at Lely. The company said it will work with employees to find a “future inside or outside the company.”

Lely has had a long-standing relationship with Vermeer in the U.S. Vermeer announced it sold its minority stake in the Lely group in late 2016.