With its diversified business model and sound balance sheet, AGRANA considers itself well positioned for the future.
The war in Ukraine, which has been underway since the beginning of the 2022|23 financial year, broadly led to an increase in the already high volatility in sales markets and fueled price hikes in procurement markets, notably for raw materials and energy. In addition, the fact that agricultural imports from Ukraine are granted preferential access could cause further market disruption in the EU. For the 2024|25 financial year, despite the current reduction in volatility, it is difficult to assess the economic and financial impact, the security of supply and the duration of this temporary exceptional situation.
| AGRANA-Group | 2023|24 Actual | 2024|25 Forecast | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | €m | 3,786.9 | Slight reduction | |
| EBIT | €m | 151.0 | Significant reduction | |
| Investment1 | €m | 127.3 | 120 |
1 Investment represents purchases of property, plant and equipment and intangible assets, excluding goodwill.
At Group level for the full 2024|25 financial year, AGRANA expects a significant decrease in operating profit (EBIT). Group revenue is projected to show a slight reduction.
For the 2024|25 financial year in the Fruit segment, AGRANA is forecasting a significant improvement in EBIT on steady revenue. The fruit preparations business expects a moderate, price-related decline in revenue with stable volumes. Its EBIT should improve significantly in 2024|25 due to the base effect of the 2023|24 asset impairment in Asia, among other reasons. In the fruit juice concentrate activities, revenue for the new financial year is predicted to rise from one year earlier. In view of the sales contracts closed to date for product from the 2023 crop, the earnings situation in the concentrate business in 2024|25 is expected to remain good.
Please also refer to the Ukraine disclaimer in the AGRANA Group table tab.
| Fruit segment | 2023|24 Actual | 2024|25 Forecast | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | €m | 1,566.9 | Steady | |
| EBIT | €m | 60.2 | Significant increase | |
| Investment1 | €m | 50.8 | 56 |
1 Investment represents purchases of property, plant and equipment and intangible assets, excluding goodwill.
For the Starch segment, a slight decrease in revenue is forecast for the 2024|25 financial year, driven by a continuing decline in selling prices. It is anticipated that purchase prices and production costs will not fall to the same extent as sales prices. Although projects have been initiated to further increase efficiency and reduce costs through process optimisation, EBIT is therefore expected to be significantly lower than in the year before.
Please also refer to the Ukraine disclaimer in the AGRANA Group table tab.
| Starch segment | 2023|24 Actual | 2024|25 Forecast | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | €m | 1,148.7 | Slight reduction | |
| EBIT | €m | 50.4 | Significant reduction | |
| Investment1 | €m | 42.1 | 34 |
1 Investment represents purchases of property, plant and equipment and intangible assets, excluding goodwill.
In the Sugar segment, AGRANA is projecting a price-driven, moderate revenue reduction in 2024|25. While higher sales volumes are budgeted in both the industrial and reseller sectors, a challenging market environment with enormous competition from Ukraine in the EU deficit countries, among other factors, is putting growing pressure on prices. Despite lower energy expenses, EBIT is therefore expected to decrease very significantly year-on-year.
Please also refer to the Ukraine disclaimer in the AGRANA Group table tab.
| Sugar segment | 2023|24 Actual | 2024|25 Forecast | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | €m | 1,071.3 | Moderate reduction | |
| EBIT | €m | 40.4 | Very significant reduction | |
| Investment1 | €m | 34.4 | 30 |
1 Investment represents purchases of property, plant and equipment and intangible assets, excluding goodwill.
Total investment across the three business segments in the 2024|25 financial year, at approximately € 120 million, is expected to be moderately below the 2023|24 value and thus only in line with the budgeted depreciation of about € 120 million. Around 12% of this capital expenditure will be for emission reduction measures in the Group’s own production operations as part of the AGRANA climate strategy.
Investment in the Fruit segment this year is budgeted at approximately € 56 million, which is about 25% above the expected level of depreciation. The planned main focus is on asset replacement and maintenance investment as well as production optimisation measures (e.g., for energy efficiency).
The budgeted investment volume in the Starch segment for this year is about € 34 million and will thus be approximately 30% below the level of depreciation. Most of the capital expenditures will go to product optimisation and plant modernisation projects.
The capital expenditures of about € 30 million planned in the Sugar segment for 2024|25 are expected to slightly exceed depreciation. Besides asset replacement and maintenance investment, the spending is being directed especially to energy savings, productivity gains and yield improvement.
With AGRANA’s science-based climate targets having been validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) in September 2023, activity in the 2024|25 financial year will focus on the specific implementation planning of emission reduction projects in two areas: the Group’s own production operations (Scope 1 and 2) and – once the revised Greenhouse Gas Protocol and the Land Sector and Removals Guidance relevant to the agricultural sector are published – the upstream supply chain (Scope 3). The basis for the development of reduction measures in the area of agricultural products will be the gradual introduction of primary data collection for the calculation of emission factors at suppliers.
In 2024|25, AGRANA will also prepare intensively for the growing reporting requirements resulting from the introduction of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive for the 2024|25 financial year and other legal requirements arising in connection with the European Green Deal.