In the 2018/2019 financial year, Tonkens Agrar AG increased its consolidated revenues to EUR 16.88 million (previous year: EUR 14.47 million). This sales increase is mainly attributable to the sales development of the subsidiary Börde Vita LLC. Börde Vita expanded its sales volume by just under 16%, and in combination with higher potato prices its revenues increased by slightly more than 57%. Accordingly, segment sales in warehousing and marketing improved from EUR 5.24 million to EUR 7.11 million. Segment arable segment sales also increased to EUR 3.71 million (previous year EUR 3.13 million).
Nevertheless, the group's total operating performance improved only marginally to EUR 17.54 million (previous year: EUR 17.52 million). Other operating income thus fell to an average level of EUR 1.21 million (previous year EUR 2.16 million) (in the previous year this item had still included income from the sale of space and the reversal of provisions). In addition, total operating performance included the reduction in inventories of finished goods and work in progress of EUR 0.56 million (previous year: increase in inventories of EUR 0.83 million).
In 2014, the group commissioned a new potato and onion peeling operation from Börde Vita at the Wanzleben site / Photo: Börde Vita GmbH.
With overall higher total costs and a financial result that improved by EUR 0.1 million, consolidated earnings before taxes (previously: profit from ordinary activities) were in line with expectations at EUR 0.2 million (previous year: EUR 0.75 million). The most significant cost increase related to the cost of materials at EUR 7.61 m (2007: EUR 7.12 m), as raw materials had to be purchased for own processing due to the low potato and onion harvest in 2018. After taxes, the group posted a net loss for the year of EUR 0.22 million (previous year: net income of EUR 0.53 million).
No improvement in sales and earnings expected
The current fiscal year 2019/2020 is a challenging one for the Tonkens Group. As already announced in the harvest notification at the end of October, the 2019 harvest of the Tonkens Group was disappointing, due to the continuing drought. At the same time, producer prices are currently below the previous year's level.
Against this backdrop, the level of group revenue that can be generated in 2019/2020 will once again depend to a large extent on the marketing success of potatoes and onions, in particular those processed by Börde Vita. The plans envisage a comparable sales volume to that of the previous year, while potato prices (raw materials) have so far fallen slightly short of the previous year's figure.
In total, the Managing Board of Tonkens Agrar AG expects consolidated sales revenues for 2019/2020 to be comparable to or slightly down on the year under review. With rather stable total costs, but again influenced by the price development and the necessary purchase of raw materials for refinement by Börde Vita, pre-tax earnings at group level are also expected to be comparable to the year under review.
For more ionformation:
Tonkens Agrar AG
Gerrit Tonkens, Vorstand
Welsleber Straße 1, 39171 Sülzetal
Tel +49 (0) 39205 41 74 - 10
Fax +49 (0) 39205 41 74 - 20
E-Mail ir@tonkens-agrar.de
www.tonkens-agrar.de
Börde Vita GmbH 
An der Alten Tonkuhle 3
39164 Wanzleben
Tel. +49.39209.6909 0
Fax +49.39209.6909 119
Email kontakt@boerdevita.de
www.boerdevita.de