News Annual figures
Vion manages to double profit despite corona
The corona crisis has put pressure on many companies, including pork producer Vion. The company's turnover decreased slightly in 2020, but the crisis did not have a negative impact on profit. It has almost doubled compared to 2019.
Vion's sales last year amounted to €4,9 billion, a decrease of 3,1% compared to the previous year. This decrease is largely attributed to lower sales prices of beef and pork. Sales volume, on the other hand, increased by 1%.
EBITDA increased by €9,1 million to €122,3 million and final profit increased from €26,6 million in 2019 to €52,9 million in 2020.
Vion clearly sees itself well equipped for the future. At the end of 2020, the meat group had a liquidity buffer of approximately €49 million. The company will even pay out a dividend of €2020 million for 17,5.
Not an easy year
CEO Ronalds Lotgerink has the following to say about the closed year: "Vion, like the rest of society, has not had an easy year. It was difficult, not only from a business point of view, but also for society as a whole. the year was promising, until the alarming signals about COVID-19 reached us."
Vion has put together specialized teams at an early stage of the pandemic to ensure the health of our employees and the continuity and cash flow of the company. Strict corona measures, collaboration with universities and governments and many tests formed the basis for preventing the spread of the virus. "We have successfully adapted to the new circumstances, we have gained in resilience and managed to deliver a stable financial result," said Lotgerink.
“To create transparent supply chains, we have spent more than €90 million on production sites such as Boxtel, plant-based meat substitutes and new blockchain technologies. Our Building Balanced Chains (BBC) strategy is on the right track towards a sustainable and healthy future,” he said. CEO Ronald Lotgerink.
Forecast 2021
The company still faces a number of challenges for the coming year. It will probably take some time for the situation to normalize. Lotgerink: "We see a lot of unrest in the market among our customers and consumers. The catering industry is still dealing with lockdowns, which means that we are constantly adjusting our activities. In Germany, the African swine fever and the new working conditions law will demand our attention. We will be flexible and agile to meet these challenges, just like in 2020, and we will adapt to the circumstances."
In the past year, Vion spent more than €90 million on production locations such as Boxtel, plant-based meat substitutes and new blockchain technologies. "Our Building Balanced Chains (BBC) strategy is the right course for a sustainable and healthy future," says Lotgerink. "We see that the core elements of our BBC strategy are relevant and successful and we will make good use of that in the coming year."
Chanti Oussoren
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