The company, which has a market capitalisation of more than $A11 billion, has its roots in agricultural retailing in North America, with similar retail arms to Australian giants Landmark and Elders.

It also has a strong wholesale fertiliser business, which markets more than eight million tonnes annually of nitrogen, phosphate and potash.

Based in Calgary, the largest city in the Canadian province of Alberta, Agrium's push for AWB is the company's first foray into grain marketing.

Chief executive Mike Wilson said Agrium was looking to diversify.

“We’ve done very little in grain marketing and we’re looking to add that extra piece to our retail output.”

The company had earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of $US823 million last year, down from a figure of $US2.32 billion in 2008 at the height of the farm input boom.

It still remains over double the company’s earnings in 2003, when its EBITDA was $400 million, and Mr Wilson attributed most of the growth to acquisitions.

Along with purchases in North and South America, Agrium has diversified into Europe, via the acquisition of a Brussels-based agribusiness, while the company has also bought up in the Middle East.

In spite of this, Mr Wilson said North America remained the core focus, with more than 80 per cent of revenue generated on that continent.

Mr Wilson said a core plank of Agrium’s acquisitions policy was that the new businesses remained autonomous.

“With our business in Argentina, all our workforce is made up of locals, there are no ex-pat Canadians, we believe locals can run the business best.”