The Benetton family has sold two agricultural businesses in Argentina covering more than 900,000 hectares across four provinces, ending the Italian family's 35-year presence in the country, the Buenos Aires Times reports. The buyers are a group of partners and executives from agribusiness firm Adecoagro, led by its chief executive Mariano Bosch, acting personally rather than through the company, according to the Noticias Argentinas agency.
The deal covers Compañía de Tierras Sud Argentino and Ganadera Cóndor, which run farming and livestock operations in Buenos Aires, Río Negro, Chubut and Santa Cruz. The Patagonian estates hold about 250,000 sheep and produce more than 880,000 kilos of wool a year. The Benettons, who bought the main company in 1991, were among Argentina's largest landowners, and their Patagonian holdings have long featured in debates about foreign ownership of land.
Source: Buenos Aires Times
