The Oetker Group announced it achieved “decent results” in FY 2022 and is “cautiously optimistic” about the current financial year. The Food, Beer and Non-Alcoholic Beverages and Other Interests business divisions achieved consolidated net sales of EUR 6,508 million, an increase of 11.6% compared to the previous year.
“The war that broke out in Ukraine in February 2022 changed everything: in addition to the serious social and political consequences caused by the war, the global economy also suffered severe setbacks. Commodity and energy prices on the world markets quickly soared to unprecedented heights. The consequence was inflation affecting all areas of life, which all consumers still feel every day, especially at supermarket checkouts. It is all the more pleasing that the Oetker Group has managed to withstand these challenges thanks to high cost awareness and increase its sales to EUR 6.5 billion”, comments Dr. Albert Christmann, General Partner of Dr. August Oetker KG, on the figures.
Christmann shares his take on the current financial year: “Our high resilience should not obscure the fact that we are still having to contend with significant cost increases in almost all operating areas, but above all in procurements and wages. This is forcing us to take massive cost-saving measures, which will probably still continue to accompany us in the next two years. However, I am confident that we will not only solve the challenges together as a Group, but also seize the opportunities that arise as a result. This will also include exploiting the market opportunities that arise and driving forward the digital transformation of our companies. In the end, we will emerge stronger from these times of crisis.“
2022 in detail
All business divisions increased their sales compared to 2021, with the ‘Other Interests’ business division recording the strongest relative growth (30.3%). This growth in sales was primarily driven by the digital business models, the company reveals. Together with the Conditorei Coppenrath & Wiese, Dr. Oetker increased sales by 7.5% to EUR 3,963 million. The pizza and Dr. Oetker Professional business developed particularly well, the company highlights.
The Food division sales in Germany increased by 14.8% to EUR 3,645 million. The share of sales generated outside of Germany is 44% of the total sales.
The investments of the group, amounting to EUR 231 million, were 16.3% below the level of the previous year (EUR 267 million in 2021). The majority of the were made in the Food division, where the main focus was on production and logistics.
Sales growth was evident in all regions: The European markets, especially in Germany and Eastern Europe, and Region 3A (Africa/Asia/Australia) grew, while growth in the Americas was primarily currency-related.
Following an already good previous year, the Western Europe region recorded higher-than-expected sales growth. Some countries were not without challenges, Italy being one of them.
In Eastern Europe, Dr. Oetker achieved sales growth compared to the previous year, despite discontinuing its business in Russia. This was due in particular to additional listings with various customers in Poland.
Photo: AdobeStock (#456834347)
