General Meeting of the Affiliated Company Emsland-Stärke AG
Following the virtual General Meeting held last year onlibe, the 19th Annual General Meeting of the Affiliated Company Emsland-Stärke AG took place this year once again at the Altes Gasthaus Kamp in Meppen. Accordingly, 197 preferred shareholders of the Emsland-Stärke AG affiliated company could gain an impression of the previous business year in person.
The General Meeting was led by Mr. Lambert Vette, Deputy Chairman of the Board. Mr. Vette began by presenting the report of the Supervisory Board for the 2020/21 business year.
Next, in the report of the Executive Board, Mr. Gerrit-Jan Wesselink discussed first the individual financial statement of the company and then the consolidated statement for the corporate group for the 2020/21 business year. He explained the trend in sales (a minus of 1.0%) and the EBIT margin, which was lower than in the previous years. The causes for this were, in particular, lower selling prices, higher amortization and higher outlays for energy. As in the previous years, the equity base of the Emsland Group continued to improve in the 2020/21 business year.
Another member of the Executive Board of Emsland-Stärke AG, Dr. Hausmann, reported on the current significant legal affairs of the Group.
At the end of the first part of the event, the General Meeting itself, the proposals for the appropriation of the net profit for the 2020/21 business year were accepted by a vote and the members of the Supervisory Board and Executive Board were granted discharge from liability.
In the second part of the event, the directors gave an overview of the trends in the current 2021/22 business year. First, alongside the budget targets and current earnings performance, Mr. Gerrit-Jan Wesselink (CEO) provided an overview of the investments and financing. In the campaign report that followed he discussed first the challenges posed by rising prices, and those of energy, fertilizer, and crop protection products in particular. After presenting the volume developments for potatoes he discussed the significantly higher payout prices for potatoes in the coming 2022/23 business year with which the cultivation was to be secured.
In the presentations that followed on the markets for Emsland-Stärke GmbH, Mr. Christian Kemper (CSO) then gave a comprehensive overview of native starches and derivatives on the basis of potatoes and peas. The counterpart to this then followed on the flake and granule market.
Finally, Mr. Stefan Hannemann (COO) reported on the Operations division. He discussed the extensive investments being made in the Emsland Group sites. Particularly salient here is the reconstruction of the autoclave plant in Emlichheim, begun in the previous year.
The atmosphere at the event was very good overall and trust in the Supervisory Board, the Executive Board and the management was evident. At the end of the 3-hour meeting, the participants could then enjoy a rich buffet while reviewing the content of the highly informative presentations in conversation and exchange.