EUROPEAN PROTEIN PAYS BACK
The Danish animal protein producer European Protein has just published its annual report for 2021. And the results will benefit the employees.
At European Protein, all employees get a cut of the surplus. This means that each employee receives two extra months’ salary on top of their regular salary on the 31st of May this year.
” I would like to thank all employees in European Protein. 2021 has been a tough year, and everyone has put all of their efforts into the company. We are very aware of the importance of a lean organisation, and we put large responsibility on the shoulders of each employee. It’s fun but very demanding. And so a reward is in place when the company reaches its goals,” say’s the CEO Jens Legarth.
The books show an improved gross profit of 2.1 MIO EUR and an operating profit of 1 MIO EUR.
The company produces three animal protein products: EP199 consisting of fermented rapeseed and seaweed targeted maternal feeding, EP100i made from fermented rapeseed used for zinc-free piglet weaning and the soy protein EP200 for growing animals.
But especially one protein has been driving growth in 2021.
More milk sells
Pig producers use EP199 to boost milk production and increase the stability of the sow herd. According to European Protein, focusing on a better milk production creates the best value for money:
“When the sow can produce enough milk, fewer nursing sows are needed, and the pig producer has healthier and stronger piglets – much easier to wean without medicinal zinc. And so the sow is the focal point for successful zinc-free weaning,” say’s pig advisor Pia Sørensen from European Protein.
And the popularity of EP199 has contributed to the positive result for 2021.
Even though EP199 increases the cost when added to the sow feed, the benefits outweigh the cost:
“EP199 in the sow feed makes it possible to wean piglets without expensive additives in the piglet weaning feed,” says Pia Sørensen and continues:
“On top, we recommend adding 10% of EP100i to the weaning feed to further support the health of the piglets after weaning.”
To help pig producers get ready for zinc-free weaning, European Protein has written a 23-page guide with practical tips. The guide costs an e-mail and can be downloaded here:
https://www.europeanprotein.com/guide-for-zinc-free-weaning/
In addition, the company offers free visitations to individual farms to help pig producers prepare for zinc-free weaning.
Danish proteins are popular in the US
European Protein is a part of a group of companies producing animal protein in Denmark, Ukraine and the US. In the US market especially, sales of fermented protein are booming:
“We have a firm grip on the US market. American pig producers battle with rising feed costs, but the market conditions are better, as the pig prices are higher. And so we are investing in expanding the US production,” says Jens Legarth.
In the Danish market, the situation is quite different. European Protein is using all of its capacity in the Danish factory, but unlike the US, the company has no plans to expand the production at the moment:
“Low prices on pigs, high feed costs, and an upcoming additional CO2 taxation makes Denmark an unattractive market for expansion. Considering the current market situation, we expect a reduction in pigs of 15% after summer,” says Jens Legarth.
In contrast to the Danish production, the Uranian factory runs on low capacity due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Overall, the marked outlook causes the CEO to expect a decline in the otherwise steady positive results obtained through the years – and a less favourable 2022.
Expectations for 2022 are lowered
European Protein expects a reduction in the 2022 earnings.
The company, selling protein on contract basis, is affected by increasing costs for feedstock and energy:
“The long-term contracts entered before the rise in prices are reducing the margin due to a rise in energy and feedstock costs, so the expectations for 2022 are lowered quite a bit. In addition, we do not expect the Ukrainian production to be at full capacity in 2022,” Jens Legarth continues.
There are positive beats to the track despite the gloomy market situation, as the company has been granted funds to run several scientific projects. The project scopes will be revealed after summer.
One project has already been started: A test of EP199 on dairy cows. The first results are already in, presented at this year’s NutriFair. Here, European Protein showed that EP199 increased the production of milk and reduced the somatic cell count in milk – the same effects as seen when feeding sows:
“We are now testing at a larger scale whether feed efficiency is also improved along with the calves’ health, ” explains Pia Sørensen when asked about the trials expected to be published at the end of 2022.
