Mahindra to Exit Japan Agri Equipment Business JV

As part of restoring its global agricultural equipment business, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd said its Japanese associate, Mitsubishi Mahindra Agricultural Machinery Co Ltd, plans to exit the agricultural machinery business and start liquidation.

In a stock exchange filing on Monday, the company said Mitsubishi Mahindra Agricultural Machinery, in which M&M holds a minority stake, will wind down research and development, production, and domestic and overseas sales of farm equipment. It will continue to supply spare parts and honour warranty obligations to customers.

Production and sales are expected to cease by the first half of the financial year 2027. Mitsubishi Mahindra Agricultural Machinery reported revenue from operations of Rs 2,094.17 crore for FY2025. After eliminating inter-company transactions with the Mahindra Group, it contributed Rs 1,786.03 crore, or 1.13%, to M&M’s consolidated turnover. As of March 31, 2025, the subsidiary had a negative net worth of Rs 17.74 crore.

The decision follows a strategic assessment that the business is unlikely to be profitable over the long term after sustained losses, and comes as M&M reviews its international farm equipment footprint, including markets such as North America, Europe and Japan.

M&M has earlier signalled that the company was “looking at the overall farm international strategy” given structural industry challenges. “Where is it that we see a structural decline in the market and do we have a clear organic play there,” Chief Financial Officer Amarjyoti Barua said at the time, adding that the company would pivot where necessary in markets with “structurally mature and declining market” dynamics. 

On the Japan business specifically, Rajesh Jejurikar, executive director of M&M’s auto and farm divisions, earlier noted that while Mahindra’s market share remained stable, Japan’s farm machinery category had been contracting for years. “The category has been on a decline for a long period of time,” he said, citing demographic headwinds including an ageing farming population. 

Last year, the company said it took impairments of Rs 79 crore for Sampo Rosenlew in Finland and Rs 77 crore for Mitsubishi Agricultural Machinery in Japan. Both entities have struggled to maintain profitability, prompting M&M to initiate cost-cutting and operational restructuring efforts.

Mahindra’s global footprint in the farm equipment business includes operations in North America, Brazil, and Mexico, as well as full ownership of Turkey’s Erkunt Sanayi Traktor and a 75.1% stake in Hisarlar, also in Turkey.

M&M’s global farm equipment strategy includes wholly owned operations such as Erkunt Sanayi Traktor and a majority stake in Hisarlar in Turkey, as well as minority interests in other markets. The company is the world’s largest tractor manufacturer, with strong domestic volumes and a growing international presence.

The exit from the Japanese business marks a significant recalibration of Mahindra’s international agri equipment operations, as it focuses on markets with clearer growth prospects and sustainable returns.