Carbery Group has reported a positive financial performance for the year ended 31 December 2022.
Overall, group turnover increased by 31%, to just under €700.8 million.
Group EBITDA increased by 4%, to €52.1 million.
Group EBITA increased to €32.8 million during the period, reflecting a year-on-year increase of 5%.
Jason Hawkins, CEO, commented, “We are pleased to be able to report to our shareholders a successful year for Carbery. This is in the form of revenue and business performance, which saw record returns from markets for our products, but balanced with very high input costs for Carbery and for our farmer shareholders.
“What I judge to be more important is that we managed this situation to build for our future.
“Introducing Futureproof, our sustainability bonus for our suppliers, supporting shareholders on fixed milk contracts, and setting aside €10 million for our Sustainability Fund, to support milk price challenges through 2023 – these are forward-looking initiatives designed to ensure a stable future for our shareholders.”
Milk Volumes
Milk volumes at the Carbery Ballineen plant decreased to 598 million litres, all processed in West Cork.
Carbery chairman Cormac O’Keeffe said, “Twenty twenty-two [2022] was a banner year for milk prices, and we were happy to be able to deliver these in line with shareholder expectations. Equally important for myself and the board was our commitment to preparing for the future.
“With Futureproof, our sustainability bonus, we are providing tangible financial support from the company to support farmers in adopting more sustainable and efficient practices. We are proud to be supporting our farmer shareholders through a difficult period for farming.”
Sustainability Central To Growth Objectives
Sustainability – central from the beginnings of the company as a dairy cooperative in the 1960s – continues to be the foundation of how Carbery operates.
As well as prioritising environmental issues, Carbery noted that its sustainability strategy also covers community, the marketplace, the supply chain, and people.
The group reported further progress towards its sustainability ambitions.
Greenhouse gas emissions reduced across all global sites by 5.5%, due to a reduction in energy use and a temporary change of energy source.
Water usage across the group reduced by 8.4%, due to a ‘longstanding and ambitious programme of water reduction across the group’.
Waste-to-landfill was reduced by 44.7%, due to a focus on waste management and a redirection of waste arising from landfill into waste-to-energy.
The Carbery cheese business continued to perform strongly in 2022.
Carbery continues to produce cheese for 12 months of the year, and of the 63,000 tonnes produced in 2021, 12,000 of this was mozzarella, produced through the expanded facility in Ballineen.
Price inflation and rising energy costs were challenges that had to be tightly managed.
There is strong stability in this business, and Carbery has built a strong customer base across Europe and Asia, the company noted.
Nutrition
Carbery’s nutritional ingredients business had another strong performance in 2022. Its whey-based ingredients are used in nutritional applications such as infant formula, sports nutrition and clinical nutrition.
Customers are located across geographical markets including the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa, Oceania and the Middle East.
Looking Ahead
This year (2023) will see the development of the next strategy for Carbery Group, as it looks to medium- and long-term horizons to plan for the future.
Commenting on this, Hawkins explained, “In 2022, the company collectively agreed on a new purpose – enriching lives, together – which will be brought to life in 2023 and unite the team to deliver on the ambition of our new strategy.
“This purpose encompasses our impact on our customers, but also with our shareholders, employees, suppliers, partners, and our wider communities. We are always close to our cooperative roots, and so we are focused on making our collective impact a positive one, and a meaningful one.”
Read More: Carbery Expands Footprint In Asia With Opening Of Premises In Singapore
© 2023 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Donna Ahern. For more A-brand news, click here. Click subscribe to sign up for the Checkout print edition.
