(Yicai Global) Nov. 4 -- A unit of Grand Industrial Holding, a Chinese bulk commodity trader, intends to purchase Microbe Biotechnology, one of the country's largest maker of an antibiotic fungicide, for CNY830 million (USD114 million) to boost its ecological innovation portfolio.

Grand will acquire China's biggest manufacturer of kasugamycin, which is used to treat rice plant diseases, to enhance its research and development in biological agriculture, the Jiangsu province-based parent of the buyer said in a statement yesterday.

The Shaanxi province-based biopesticide maker has net assets of CNY201 million, less than a quarter of the offer.

With 40 patents, Microbe’s products are sold in more than 30 countries and regions, including Japan and South Korea, per the statement.

Grand entered the pesticide sector last year by acquiring an 85 percent stake in Kaili Bio-Product which is an exclusive producer of agro-antibiotic zhongshengmycin.

Grand is making green investments but its main income source remains to be bulk commodity trading. The latter segment earned CNY38.3 billion (USD5.3 billion) in revenue in the first half, accounting for 99.8 percent of all. Meanwhile, eco-agriculture made up 0.1 percent of the total.

Editor: Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi