The share of exports in total sales increased significantly

In the first half of the 2023/24 business year, the UBM Group significantly increased the proportion of its export sales revenue. While in the first half of the previous business year – i.e. in the 1 July to 31 December 2022 period – export sales accounted for 47.5 percent (HUF 58.25 billion) of the group’s total sales, in the first six months of the 2023/24 business year, this ratio reached 54.3 percent (HUF 57.25 billion). The group’s key export markets include Italy, Austria, Germany and Romania, which account for four-fifths of its total exports.

The significant drop in the price of cereal grains was a challenge

In the first half of the 2023/24 business year, the UBM Group generated sales revenue of HUF 105.34 billion in comparison to the record sales of HUF 122.67 billion achieved in the same period of the previous business year.

“Although this sales revenue falls somewhat short of that of the base period, it must be noted that the group was able to achieve this result in a market which suffered a significant drop in prices. The average price of forage maize used as a raw material for feed production fell by more than 50 percent, and the price of forage wheat dropped by about 40 percent in the half year ending 31 December 2023, which had a significant negative price effect on sales revenue.” said Péter Horváth, CEO of the UBM Group. “Pre-tax profit reached HUF 1.03 billion in the half year ending on 31 December last year, which clearly shows an improving trend after the profit of HUF 1.50 billion for the entire 12-month business year of 2022/23.” he added.

Both the commodity and feed segments increased their sales volumes

Out of the two traditional businesses of the UBM Group, the commodity business, which deals in grains and oilseeds, traded 532,249 tons of goods out of the group in the first half of the previous business year. This volume increased to 622,151 tons (up by 16.9 percent) in the first half of the current business year. The feed material trading business sold 218,934 tons of goods in the first six months of the 2022/23 business year, increasing this by more than a quarter to 274,763 tons in the half-year that ended on 31 December last year.

UBM continues to implement its growth strategy outlined for the 2025/26 business year

In March last year, the UBM Group presented its growth strategy and business plan for the 2025/26 business year, with the main objective is to achieve an annual feed production volume of 1 million tons and an annual feed material trade volume of 2 million tons. In order to do this

• the company, which operates a total of 6 feed factories in Hungary, Slovakia and Romania, is continuing expansion in Central and Eastern Europe through further acquisitions and greenfield investments, and is further developing its regional logistics infrastructure in the commodity business.
• in order to broaden vertical integration, it also entered the animal husbandry segment in the half year ending on 31 December last year, by purchasing Mangal Ilona Sertéshizlalda Kft., which deals with animal breeding. The group will build Europe’s most modern and most sustainable pig farm by 2026, and it plans to produce 500,000 fattening pigs annually.
• by opening new commercial offices, the UBM Group is continuing to expand its commercial operations on the continent by 2025. Within two years it will be able to supply all markets within a roughly two thousand-kilometre radius around Hungary. For this purpose, the group, also in the first half of the current business year, established its newest commercial office in Italy. According to plans, UBM Italy S.r.l., will already trade 100,000-150,000 tons of feed from maize, wheat, soybeans and barley, as well as sunflower, rapeseed and soybean meal in Italy in the 2024/2025 business year.

“Established in 1996, the UBM Group is one of the largest feed material traders and a market-leading feed manufacturer in Hungary. In addition to being a market leader in Hungary, we want to become one of the three largest feed manufacturers in both the Romanian and Serbian markets within three years. Simultaneously, our wholesale business strives to increase our market share on the continent by constant market development. As a result, we can achieve the annual feed production of 1 million tons and the annual raw material trade of 2 million tons, as adopted and published in our growth strategy,” Péter Horváth, CEO of UBM said.