Cargill, a Wayzata, Minn.-based food producer and marketer ranked by Forbes Magazine as the largest closely held company in the U.S., was the first of the three agricultural companies to begin managing outside money through its investment affiliates. Those units include Black River, which manages hedge and private-equity funds, and CarVal Investors, created during the savings and loan crisis of the late 1980s as a specialist in distressed debt.

Black River was established in 2003 as the successor to Cargill's proprietary financial trading operations, which had a 20-year history of trading in global financial markets, according to the investment advisory company's Web site. Headed by Gary Jarrett, the firm started raising money last year for separate private-equity funds that specialize in food and agriculture, according to regulatory filings. The Black River Commodity Trading Fund, established in 2009, now has about $535 million in assets.

'Major Player'

ADM, the world's largest grain processor with $61.7 billion in revenue for the year ended June 30, uses futures to manage risk posed by fluctuations in agricultural commodity prices as well as transportation costs, energy prices, interest rates and foreign currency exchange rates, according to the Decatur, Illinois, company's annual report.

The company's dominance in cash markets for corn and wheat suggests it also plays a big role in the futures markets for these crops, said John Person, president of NationalFutures.com, a Glenview, Illinois, investment adviser.

"ADM is a major player as far as commercial markets and bringing liquidity as a hedger to the commodity arena," Person said. "You can bet your bottom dollar they are hedging in the corn futures business."

Fund-of-Funds

ADM Investor Services provides commodities trading and hedging services to ADM. The Chicago-based firm also offers consulting services to clients interested in managed futures strategies through Balarie Capital Management, a division of its Archer Financial Services subsidiary.

ADM Investor Services filed a private placement notice with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on April 15 for a diversified strategies fund that will allocate money to independent advisers who trade futures on interest rates, agricultural and energy commodities, and foreign currencies. It's the first time that the firm has managed outside capital, according to Thomas Kadlec, president of ADM Investor Services.

"Over the past several years, we have seen a growing interest in managed futures as a liquid trading strategy that is non-correlated with traditional investments such as stocks and bonds," Kadlec wrote in an e-mail. The fund will provide investors with a "diversified exposure to a basket of commodity trading advisers."

'Market Wizards'