March 23, 2017

Aqua feed maker BioMar reports higher EBIT for 2016

Aquaculture feed maker BioMar Group has reported a significantly improved EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) from 447 million Danish kroner (US$64.8 million) in 2015 to DKK581 million (($84.3 million) in 2016.

At the same time, it added, working capital was reduced from 752 million ($109.12 million) to DKK414 million ($60.08 million), leading to a strong cash flow from operations. Revenue ended up slightly lower than last year with a modest increase in volumes.

"We are very happy to deliver the best results ever in BioMar Group and strong numbers for some years in a row, despite the fact that we have faced difficulties and lack volumes in some of our important markets, especially Chile due to the algae bloom and strikes", BioMar Group CEO Carlos Diaz said.

BioMar has focused on product innovation, margin management, process improvements and employee development.

New strategy

"It is clear that our new strategy 'Shaping the future' is leading to tangible results. We decided to continue as the only focused global aquaculture feed company enhancing local agility and global excellence. I firmly believe that we start to see how we are differentiating ourselves from our main competitors being close to the customers in the markets and delivering customer focused global innovation with short time to market", Diaz stated.

Diaz sees the company facing highly competitive markets, and to ensure its future growth and profitability, BioMar last year opened a factory in Turkey, the second-largest market in Europe; and started building a new factory in Wuxi in eastern China and acquired another one in Haiwei, southern China. 

It is building a new line in Karmøy, Norway, and additional logistic investments including its new gas-driven ship in order to increase flexibility, bringing the Norwegian capacity up to 600,000 tonnes.

"On top of these expansions we fortified our organisation making us ready for the challenges of tomorrow. One example is building a global R&D Centre with a strong link to the business and with own high-end trial facilities in Europe as well as America, where we started the ATC Patagonia Centre, a state of the art facility in Chile", Diaz said.