Vandemoortele continues to invest despite temporary impact of Covid-19

Please find the 2020 annual results here.

Please find the 2020 key financials here.

Ghent, 22 March 2021 – Today, Vandemoortele published its annual 2020 results. After a promising start of the year, the European food group saw its results decline from March onwards as a consequence of the Covid-19 crisis. Adjusted EBITDA ended at 104 million euro, a decrease of 32% compared to the previous financial year. The main reason for this decline is the decrease in food service sales due to the temporary closure of most of the restaurants in Europe. Vandemoortele expects a recovery in sales and results in the second half of this year and continues to invest in innovation and sustainability.

The last year was exceptional from every perspective. Like many companies, we felt the crisis in our sales and results. The fact that consumers went less often to the supermarket or to restaurants and hotels made sales more difficult. Nevertheless, we are continuing to invest in the future, and our ambition remains future growth in a profitable, sustainable, and socially responsible manner,” says Yvon Guérin, Vandemoortele CEO, who took over the reins from Jules Noten in the summer of 2020.

Gradual recovery in second half of 2020

Revenues in 2020 decreased compared to the previous financial year, amounting to 1,197 million euro (-13.5%). After a steep decrease in sales and results from March to June 2020, due to lockdowns in most European countries, sales and results picked up during the second half of 2020. Adequate management measures with respect to cost control and cutting of expenses enabled the company to mitigate the drop in profitability. While adjusted EBITDA was down by 47% in the first half of 2020, the decrease was limited to 21% in the second half.

table 2020

Vandemoortele’s Bakery Products business line was hit particularly hard by the Covid-19 crisis. This business line saw a fall in revenue to 724 million euro (-18.2%). This decrease was mainly due to the negative impact of the lockdowns and curfew under Covid-19 regulations on the food service channel, but retail sales were also slightly lower than previous financial year, due to lower consumer footfall in stores and a shift to longer shelf-life bakery goods. The response to this situation was appropriate management measures to control costs and cut expenses as well as the launch of new prepacked “thaw & serve” products to respond to the specific requirements of the e-commerce channel. The Margarine, Culinary Oils and Fats (MCOF) business line was overall less impacted by Covid-19 than Bakery Products.

The business line achieved a revenue of 470 million euro, a decrease of 5.4% compared to the previous financial year. While there was a growth of sales in retail brands and private labels, the European artisan bakery, food service and industry channels were severely affected by Covid-19.

Investments and stable financial position 

In 2020, Vandemoortele invested 66 million euro in enhancing and improving the production capacity for Bakery Products and further rationalizing and modernizing the MCOF production sites. The financial position of the group remains very strong, partly due to the sale of its minority stake in the Spanish oil refinery Lipidos Santiga, which contributed to the further improved debt position. The company also devised a new sustainability strategy for 2025. More information about Vandemoortele’s sustainability results and strategy can be found in the Sustainability Report 2020.

Shaping a tasty future, sustainably

With the pandemic not yet under control, Vandemoortele expects sales and results to continue to suffer during the first half of the year. However, the company foresees to gradually recover in the second part of this year, once the vaccination programs have been rolled-out in combination with a relaxation of the governmental measures in Europe. “In this still difficult context, we will continue our investments with the same efforts as those of previous year to consolidate our leadership in our markets. Vandemoortele will develop its innovation program and category management to respond in a timely fashion to new market trends and to improve its product offering in terms of balanced nutrition, quality, and taste,” says Yvon Guérin.

CEO Yvon Guérin concludes by expressing his gratitude to all Vandemoortele associates: “Protecting our associates’ health and safety together with safeguarding production continuity has been our top priority during the past year. Even during these particularly difficult times, our associates have continued to mobilize their energy at the service of the company, making the business operating normally even if their way of working was severely affected. We would like to thank all of them for their continued motivation and commitment and together, we will continue shaping a tasty future, sustainably,” concludes Guérin.

About Vandemoortele 

Vandemoortele is a leading European food group that produces and sells high-quality food products. Vandemoortele concentrates on two categories: Bakery Products & Margarines, Culinary Oils and Fats. In 2020, Vandemoortele realized a revenue of 1.2 billion euro with 4,500 associates. The Vandemoortele Group is present in 12 European countries and in the United States, with its own sales organizations and/or production facilities. The head office is based in Ghent, Belgium.

For more information, please contact

Marc Croonen | CHRO, Sustainability and Communication

Marc.Croonen@vandemoortele.com

+32 (0) 473 924 575

About Vandemoortele

Vandemoortele was founded in 1899 as a Belgian family business, and has continued to grow and develop ever since. Over the last two decades, we became a European food company with leading positions in two product categories: Bakery Products (BP) and Plant-Based Food Solutions. We are known for supplying innovative and high-quality products. 

In 2023, Vandemoortele realised a turnover of around EUR 1.9 billion with 4,080 associates (permanent and temporary). The Vandemoortele Group headquarters are located in Ghent, Belgium. We have commercial offices in 12 European countries, as well as in the United States and Asia. We operate in 29 high-quality production sites all over Europe, in order to ensure proximity to all our key markets. We export from Europe to 72 countries worldwide.

News & Media Contact

Marc Croonen

marc.croonen@vandemoortele.com