ForFarmers: Increasing operating profit in first half year of 2016

 

In July, the acquisition of Vleuten-Steijn in the Netherlands was announced as a result of which the position of ForFarmers in the swine section will be further strengthened. The acquisition is pending approval of the competition authorities.

Knoop also pointed to the acquisition the company made in the UK last year which contributed to ForFarmer's recent result. "Both in macro political and macroeconomic terms, the first six months of 2016 continued being restless with the Brexit as the most significant event. The weakening of the Pound sterling had an adverse effect on our results due to the translation of the Pound sterling into Euro," he explained. "In these challenging circumstances, we were able to improve our 'underlying EBITDA', largely through the implementation of our efficiency programme, "One ForFarmers". These results and the fact that we announced an important acquisition in the Netherlands after balance sheet date, are fully in line with our Horizon 2020 strategy."

 

"ForFarmers believes in a strong future for the agricultural sector and we continue to dedicate ourselves to this fully," he added. "With that, we mean the continuity of the farm, but also the future in a broader sense: a healthy future for the sector and for sustainable food manufacturing as a whole. We do this in close collaboration with our customers, for a better return at the farm, a healthier livestock and a higher efficiency."

Furthermore, ForFarmers' expert advisors offer Total Feed solutions on the basis of specific advice. "We want to propagate this message even more powerfully and that is why we now launch our mission, "For the Future of Farming"," Knoop said. "Everything that we do, we do, because we believe in it. That is good for the farmer and therefore, for all stakeholders."