Royal Avebe performance price drops to EUR 93.30

Starch cooperative Royal Avebe announces a performance price of EUR 93.30 for the 2020/2021 financial year.

Avebe's strategic course pays off in a difficult year

The growing acreage of starch potatoes, especially outside the Netherlands, led to pressure on prices for native starch this year. Rising costs due to the corona crisis also depressed the performance price.

After two years in which the performance price benefited from a lower market supply and therefore higher prices for native starch, the achievement of this performance price is partly due to the strategic course.

Growing year 2020 is characterized by better growing conditions for starch potatoes compared to previous years. This also applied to other European countries, where the acreage of starch potatoes also increased considerably.

This higher market supply depressed prices for native potato starch and protein for animal feed. Ultimately, this resulted in a performance price of EUR 93.30. The performance price is the most important financial indicator of the cooperative. The cooperative result and the potato money come together in the performance price. The cooperative result amounts to EUR 9.2 million.

Avebe benefits from capacity expansion for vegetable protein

Avebe's strategy focuses on creating more added value by using innovative products instead of bulk products. In recent years, the demand for innovative, plant-based products has increased and Avebe's potato starch and protein products play a crucial role in this.

For example, by replacing animal protein with vegetable potato protein in dairy products, while still retaining the same nutritional and functional value. The capacity for the production of vegetable protein has expanded considerably in recent years.

In the 2020/2021 financial year, Avebe invested heavily in innovation and sustainability. In part, these were also planned investments that had been postponed in the previous financial year due to Covid-19.

Impact Covid-19

The coronavirus once again created many uncertainties. For example, the number of infections among employees increased. There was also less availability of transport and containers to get products from A to B. Nevertheless, it was possible to get all products to the customers, sometimes with some delay.

In addition, the cooperative had to deal with rising costs for transport, energy, raw materials and packaging materials.

David Fousert, Chairman of Royal Avebe:

"Our members are also faced with significant increases in costs to grow starch potatoes. It is therefore imperative that we as Avebe stay on track to continuously increase the performance price. And we do this through our strategy for high-quality products."