// UBM Investor relations: What are the non-evident challenges facing UBM that may require new solutions?

László Bustyaházai: In my opinion, digitisation and ‘Big Data’. Data analysis has huge potential for the future and companies that can take advantage of it can achieve significant competitive advantage and increased returns. Clearly, data analysis is the future. Today, the way we collect, store and process information and data has changed completely. The large amount of data may conceal the risk arising from the specificities of experimentation with live animals. So, the new challenge is to collect as much data as possible and also that we can use them as efficiently as possible.

// Are there any other challenges facing UBM?

L.B.: Yes, and that is sustainability. And by this I don’t just mean in the classical sense, when we talk about the future generation, about the importance of protecting the environment. I believe that the sustainability of the company and its growth is a key issue if we are to realise its inherent potential even more.  The most important thing is to find answers to the question of how we can capitalise on what UBM is today, and the space it has attracted as a ‘big planet’ and put it to good use. I am thinking here, among other things, of knowledge transfer. I believe in the power of joint development, and that it is in our mutual interest to pass on some effective know-how to our partners, so that they can be more efficient and successful.

// What can UBM offer that can be of positive value in investor communication?

L.B.: It is a classic paradigm. Agriculture is one of the most traditional sectors, based on customary law. We sow the seed and sometimes it takes a year to find out what the crop will be like. This means that it takes longer to see results, and this can slow down progress considerably. In the meantime, the world, the economic situation, climate change, and consumption demand that we develop in leaps and bounds, not in steps. There are a lot of questions to answer at once. What we can do to help is that, as a ‘big planet’, we have the possibility to organise a large number of conferences, invite many speakers from abroad, cooperate with many researchers. The point is that we want to think together with our partners and help them to grow.

// What is important to you on environmental issues?

L.B.: In UBM’s relation, I would specifically highlight the part that one of the most significant carbon footprints is from livestock production, which we have already discussed in our blog. Within this, the carbon footprint from feed accounts for 50-70% of total production, depending on the technologies used. So, if anything is to be achieved in the agricultural sector to reduce the negative environmental impact of livestock production, it is necessary to exploit the potential of animal nutrition. As a leading feed producer, we have to meet the challenges of domestic livestock production in this direction, which is both our primary responsibility and our task. Not only because reducing the carbon footprint – the total greenhouse gas emissions – is essential, but also because the sector is a major contributor to other, particularly harmful emissions. E.g., one such harmful substance is ammonia. Excessive feeding with protein increases emissions. But I could also mention the example of phosphorus, a pollutant with a significant environmental impact, the presence of which can also be reduced by appropriate changes in feeding practices.

One of our main goals for 2023 is to join forces with our partners to find solutions to these problems.