As the acquisition deal between Flour Mills of Nigeria (FMN) and Honeywell Flour Mills Plc takes shape, it becomes necessary to shine a light bulb on the principal facilitator John G. Coumantaros, Chairman, FMN, who armed with the foresight of a larger market, increased production and distribution network among other opportunities is placing a bet on N80 billion.
Coumantaros of Greek descent is the son of George (founder of FMN) and Sophie Coumantaros born December 10 1961. He obtained a bachelor’s degree in history from Yale University and began his career in 1984 with Southern Star Shipping, which specializes in merchant shipping of bulk cargo and is owned by his father.
According to FMN’s 2021 annual report, he began his relationship with the group in 1984 and was appointed to the Board as a non executive Director in 1990. He served as a Non-Executive Vice Chairman of the Company since 2012 and in 2014, he became the chairman of the company after his tenure as the Chief Executive Officer ended and his father retired as the chairman
He has over 30 years’ experience in international trade, logistics, manufacturing, and industry and is passionately dedicated to continuing the evolution of FMN with its Golden Penny Food Brands as one of the leading fast-moving consumer food companies and largest agro-allied concerns in Nigeria.
FMN as one of Nigeria’s largest player in the production and marketing of flour and flour products is also a diversified and vertically integrated Nigerian holding company with subsidiaries in the cement, shipping and food manufacturing industries.
When FMN celebrated its 60th anniversary, Coumantaros revealed that since the company’s establishment, the journey has been challenging but rewarding, seeing that the group has grown to become one of the largest and most impactful Food and Agro-allied businesses in Nigeria.
“We have integrated agriculture and industry to ensure that Nigeria can continue on a trajectory to meet its development aspirations; From generation to generation, FMN and Golden Penny have been with Nigerians, through the best of times and at the most difficult of times and this is a testament to the fact that our connection truly runs deep,” he said.
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Over time, Coumantaros has reiterated that FMN will continue to act with disciplined and focused investment to deliver superior, long term growth so that it can emerge stronger and better. In addition, it will continue to implement its long term strategy on local content and value additions.
In 2016, Coumantaros said the group dissolved and de-registered some dormant subsidiaries as part of its restructuring and rationalisation initiatives which include Pure Oil Mills Limited, Western Cement Limited, Burham Cement Limited, and Southern Star Shipping Company Nigeria Limited, and Sovereign Foods Limited.
Following Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s fx restriction on wheat and sugar importation, FMN intensified its focus on local production of raw materials with aggressive investment in backward integration and strategic partnership with Flour Milling Association of Nigeria (FMAN) and local farmers in order to strengthen value chains.
Also, in a bid to achieve self-sufficiency in the production of sugar in Nigeria, the group invested heavily in sugar production. The group’s Sunti Golden Sugar Estates remains one of the best performing under the National Sugar Master plan.
The group recognized the need to meet dwindling consumers’ disposable income and to deepen its penetration in the FMCG industry with the introduction of affordable products such as the recently launched breakfast cereal (Amazing Day), Auntie B Spaghetti and Spaghetti Slim.
In 2021, FMN and Honeywell agreed to combine operations of FMN through its affiliates and Honeywell Flour Mills plc (HFMP), a portfolio company of HGL, at a total enterprise value of N80 billion, which will make Honeywell Group dispose of a 71.69 percent stake in HFMP to FMN.
According to experts, a combination of FMN and HFMP will bring together two trusted and iconic brands, creating a food business that is better positioned to benefit the growing Nigerian population, further enhance national food security objectives and leverage opportunities stemming from the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement. In addition, the proposed transaction will ensure long-term job creation and sustainability for the company.
On the 17th of November 2020, he was awarded the prestigious and highly coveted Honorary Degree of Doctor of Letters (D. Letters) of the University of Ibadan in recognition of his outstanding accomplishments and contributions to Nigeria’s industrial growth through his visionary leadership at FMN, one of Nigeria’s most impactful Food and Agro-allied groups.
Under Coumantaros leadership, experts have a positive outlook for the company and its ability to grow significantly in the coming years.
“We see a lot of growth potential for food companies like Flour Mills, especially those that have churned out new and pocket-friendly products. Given our outlook for stronger consumer spending in 2022, we expect food companies to capitalize on their existing value strategy. Thus, we expect increased volume roll-out from enlarged product portfolios to support this growth,” Lagos-based Vetiva research analysts said in their 2022 outlook.
Similarly, a report by Agusto&Co, on Nigeria’s food industry states that Flour Mills is expected to maintain its market leadership by deepening volume growth across its product markets, while aggressively pushing its new value brands to garner market acceptance.
“A wide product portfolio, diversified investments, and increasing financial flexibility, as well as access to the capital market, provides headroom for its growth in the near term,” it stated.
Other than his role in FMN, Coumantaros sits on the Board of other companies and also serves as the chairman of some firms in Nigeria and the United States of America such as the Oxbow Carbon LLC, a leading international energy company and ELBISCO a fast-moving consumer food business in Athens, Greece.
