Westfleisch: Program of measures bears first fruits
The "WEfficient" program of measures launched by Westfleisch last year is beginning to bear fruit. CFO Carsten Schruck reported at today's general meeting in Münster that the cooperative's business had improved in the first five months of 2022 compared to the same period last year, and that earnings before taxes were just in the positive range. "But that's only because we're consistently implementing our program of measures: For example, we're streamlining processes, optimizing our expenses, improving shift models and working in many other areas throughout the company." realize. "We've already done almost half of it," explained Carsten Schruck. “But there is still a lot to do. Especially since further market developments remain very uncertain for months to come.”
"Another important building block for a successful future is therefore the consistent orientation as the leading quality provider in our industry," emphasized Johannes Steinhoff, Executive Vice President Processing, Beef and Technology. “For Westfleisch, quality means even better animal welfare, more regionality and a high degree of reliability for local farmers and trading partners. Accordingly, we will continue to expand the niche and growth areas that we have already successfully occupied – for example in the pet food sector, but also in the veal business. And we will gradually expand our diverse programs with retailers – keyword: higher animal welfare.”
After 2021 was already an economically very weak year for the German meat industry, the experts for the industry do not initially expect any improvement. On the contrary: the number of battles continues to decline; this applies in particular to the pork market. At the same time, costs are constantly increasing. "The African swine fever, the Chinese export ban, the Russian war of aggression, the significant increase in energy, personnel and logistics costs are having a major impact on the competitiveness of German pork," reported Michael Schulze Kalthoff, who is responsible for the pork business on the Westfleisch board. “And the oversupply is causing immense price pressure and a pork price that is too low. The economic situation for the producers is catastrophic and the framework conditions do not promise any improvement in the short term.” It is all the more important that the cooperative takes all measures to strengthen and expand its own market position.
