Cargill accelerated its expansion in animal feed by winning the auction for Provimi – its second purchase in two months - beating rival bidders including Nutreco, DSM and China's New Hope Group.

Cargill, fresh from last week unveiling record full year earnings last week, said that its E1.5bn ($2.2bn) purchase of France-based Provimi was a "significant move into the higher value-added segments" in animal feed", such as premixes and specialty products.

"Provimi has world-class expertise, knowledge and strong technical know-how, an area that we believe is key to the future of the industry," Paul Conway, the Cargill vice-chairman, said.

He also highlighted the "opportunities" presented by Provimi, which has made headway in Asia, Latin America and Russia, besides developed markets.

Beaten again 

The purchase extends a Cargill acquisition spree which, in the year to the end of May, totalled $3bn, including feed mills in Russia and Vietnam, and in June saw the group buy 59-year old Italian feed business Raggio di Sole.

The latest takeovers have been facilitated by the disposal of the group's stake in fertilizer group Mosaic - a deal which, as Cargill noted last week in announcing $4.2bn in earnings, including Mosaic, "enhances the company's credit profile", so lowering its borrowing costs.

The Provimi deal also meant beating off rivals including New Hope and a joint bid from Dutch pair DSM and Nutreco.

Nutreco, which was beaten in 2002 and 2007 in Provimi auctions, has now failed in three pursuits of the group.

It was beaten in 2007 by Permira, the private equity company which has shaken-up Provimi by selling off pet and fish food divisions to focus on livestock feed.

Nutreco shares closed up 1.5% at E46.265 in Amsterdam.