ANZCO Foods CEO update - May 2022

I recently took part in the Prime Minister’s trade delegation to Singapore and Japan to reconnect with these important markets. The official events were well supported by the overseas business communities in Singapore and Japan and provided a great opportunity to reconfirm that New Zealand was open for business and conduct valuable face-to-face discussions with key business partners in the region.

ANZCO Chairman Sam Misonou and I were proud to host the participants at our Wakanui restaurant in Tokyo.

CAPTION From left: Me with Damien O’Connor (Minister for Trade & Export Growth, & Agriculture), Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, Craig Pettigrew (NZTE Trade Commissioner for Japan) and ANZCO Executive Chair Sam Misonou

The trade mission followed a very busy and tight schedule but did provide a brief opportunity for me to catch-up with our ANZCO team in Japan and our shareholder, as well as creating connections with the others in the delegation from New Zealand businesses.

Capacity update

As you will be well aware, it’s been a tough start to the year in the red meat sector but the signs are indicating we have worked our way through the most difficult times. Working closely with you around our capacity, and with our teams going the extra mile, we have managed the operational challenges around staff absences as well as possible, and we thank you for your patience. We envisage there will be ongoing challenges for some time as we work our way through the backlog of livestock and encourage you to keep in close contact with your livestock representative as we manage our way through the season.

Strong annual result after ANZCO navigates 2021 challenges

Last week ANZCO Foods announced its financial results for 2021 and I’m pleased to report that despite the ongoing impacts of labour shortages and supply chain disruptions, ANZCO Foods has reported turnover of $1.64b and a net profit after tax of $54.3m.

The successful 2021 result builds on the previous two years’ results with a focus on core business activities, and increased investment in business systems and data analysis to ensure good decision making.

I’d like recognise the efforts of our people who have worked incredibly hard in challenging times to deliver a strong performance across the ANZCO Foods business.

The result also reflects ANZCO Foods’ continued focus on consumer needs and customer relationships in key markets and being able to navigate supply chain pressures occurring as a result of COVID-19. In addition, ANZCO Foods’ focus on revenue, yields, and value-add performance, has enabled the payment of consistently high farm-gate returns during the last three years.

ANZCO Foods has a clear strategy to derive more value from the livestock we process. This priority continues to differentiate ANZCO Foods, with our manufacturing and healthcare operations contributing strongly to the increased revenue and net profit reported for 2021.

This strategic focus was further strengthened by the recent acquisition of the leading global biotechnological business, Moregate Biotech.

With the 2022 year well underway, it is evident the strong demand for products is continuing but the challenges also remain. ANZCO Foods remains committed to doing all we can to help New Zealand’s recovery from COVID-19 by continuing to deliver strong returns.

The red meat sector is in good heart with a positive outlook. We thank you for your support and look forward to continuing to work with you in the coming year.

Peter Conley
ANZCO Foods Chief Executive