POTATO breeder and seed potato trading company Royal HZPC Group has closed the financial year with a strong result.
The annual financial statements show that two major milestones have been reached for the first time: Global revenue exceeded €500 million, and total worldwide tonnage passed the 1 million mark.
CEO of Royal HZPC Group, Hans Huistra, said: “Both HZPC and STET had a strong year, achieving growth in all key markets. Higher volumes and prices in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, as well as in Asian and American licensed production, led to a total revenue of €525 million. Gross margin rose to €96.4 million. By keeping a close eye on costs, net profit also increased significantly to €17.1 million.”
This figure is before deduction of costs related to the Connecting Growers programme.
In addition to the previously-announced record payout, the dividend per certificate also increased significantly to €10.90.
“The drop in free market prices at the end of last season, combined with challenges in the European table potato markets and several key export regions, show that the current year will be demanding, especially for free varieties,” said Hans. “Still, we’re very satisfied with the growth of our new varieties. In the French fry segment, we saw strong performance from five newcomers: Quintera, Travolta, Invictus, Cardyma and Castor.
“Norman and several STET varieties are gaining ground in chips. Rashida and Panamera are leading in traditional export markets. And in the fresh segment, Libra and Brianna are emerging alongside European market leader Colomba, which continues to grow.”
Hans said investments in R&D are increasingly paying off, and the company will continue to invest.
“Alongside our new varieties, we have a promising pipeline of newcomers that meet our resilience standards. We hope to expand our acreage again this season, both in the Netherlands and internationally. The outlook is positive.”
