Strong core business: Bell Food Group reports another very good financial year

The Bell Food Group is able to build on the good previous year in 2021 and increase adjusted sales by 3.2 percent to CHF 4.2 billion (+CHF 132.3 million). CEO Lorenz Wyss is correspondingly satisfied: "I am very pleased that we have exceeded the previous year's strong performance in these challenging conditions." All business areas of the Bell Food Group contributed to the successful business performance. The strong retail business with meat products and convenience products in the home market of Switzerland made an important contribution. The to-go convenience business and the food service sales channel showed signs of recovery following the corona-related decline in the previous year.

Best result in the company's history

At CHF 129.5 million, adjusted annual profit was CHF 11.8 million (+10.0 %) up on the previous year. Adjusted EBIT before special items amounted to CHF 164.5 million. The Bell Food Group is thus CHF 4.1 million or 2.5 percent up on the previous year in operational terms. The reported figures were adjusted for special effects of CHF 2.1 million for the reorganization of the Eisberg site in Villigen.
The strong substance of the Bell Food Group is also reflected in the balance sheet. The equity ratio is 50.5 percent, up 0.8 percentage points on the previous year. Compared to 2020, there was a shift from non-current to current financial liabilities of around CHF 190 million. This is primarily related to a bond of CHF 175 million that matures in May 2022. The Bell Food Group intends to refinance this bond in order to implement planned strategic investment projects. Net financial liabilities amount to CHF 681 million (previous year CHF 688 million) and the net gearing ratio of 2.1 is below the target of 2.5.
-> Detailed results and explanations of the 2021 financial year can be found in the 2021 Annual Report and in the separate publication "Alternative performance indicators".

Corona effect still noticeable

With the easing of coronavirus measures in spring and summer, sales in the food service sector have slowly recovered. In contrast, sales in the retail sales channel declined, albeit to a lesser extent than expected. A certain degree of uncertainty and restraint was noticeable in the markets. In the second half of the year, rising prices for plant-based raw materials, auxiliary and packaging materials and energy were noticeable. Overall, the demand situation was volatile throughout the reporting year and intensified further with the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in the last quarter of 2021. The Bell Food Group's broad-based business model in terms of product categories and sales channels has proven its worth and proved to be a strategic advantage.

Satisfactory development in the business areas

Despite the recovery in the Food Service sales channel, sales in the Retail channel remained at a high level, particularly in the first half of the year. This applies in particular to the home market of Switzerland. The Bell Switzerland division continued the good performance of the previous year in the reporting year. The poultry and especially seafood product groups performed well, growing by more than 10 percent and thus significantly expanding their market leadership in Switzerland. Both poultry and seafood have recorded solid growth for years and make a significant contribution to the profitability of the division. In the Bell International division, the strategic focus on the core competencies of raw ham and organic poultry products continues to pay off. With sales growth of over 15 percent, organic poultry grew the fastest. Thanks to a good performance in all its divisions, Bell International was able to further increase its profitability. The Convenience division recorded an increase in sales in the Food Service and To-go Convenience segments and showed signs of recovery after the corona-related slump in the previous year. The Bell Food Group is also playing a key role in the trend towards vegetarian and vegan products: the plant-based meat alternatives segment achieved pleasing growth of 25 percent.

Higher distribution

In view of the good business performance, the Bell Food Group will propose to the Annual General Meeting that the distribution be increased from CHF 0.50 to CHF 7.00 per share. The distribution will be made 50 percent from the capital contribution reserves and 50 percent from the annual result of the Bell Food Group.

-> As in the previous year, the Bell Food Group's Annual General Meeting on March 22, 2022 will again be held without the physical participation of shareholders due to the coronavirus situation. Share votes can only be exercised by issuing a power of attorney with instructions to the independent proxy.

Investing in the future

The core business in Switzerland forms the basis for the business activities of the Bell Food Group. The central strategic focus is therefore on adapting its performance in Switzerland to the future needs of customers and market conditions with foresight. The company is therefore investing around CHF 800 million in the expansion and modernization of its production infrastructure in Switzerland with a planning horizon until 2025. CEO Lorenz Wyss comments: "This will secure our performance and value creation for years to come". The Swiss investment program includes the following projects:

Modernization Oensingen - securing performance in the Swiss meat market

Production at the Oensingen site is being modernized and further developed. The construction of a new, fully automated deep-freeze warehouse with state-of-the-art freezing and thawing technology is already well advanced. This will centralize existing external storage capacities and reduce energy requirements by half. A central logistics platform and a slicing center are also under construction. These new buildings will enable a significantly faster and more efficient order-delivery cycle for fresh products and thus secure a decisive competitive advantage for the future. Construction work on the new cattle slaughterhouse will begin in March 2022. This will have the highest animal welfare, hygiene and productivity standards currently available on the market. It will replace the existing plant, which has been running at full capacity for years and has reached its planned useful life.

Expansion of Schaan and focus on Eisberg production capacities - securing the Swiss convenience market

The Bell Food Group wants to further strengthen its foothold in the Swiss convenience market. In addition to modernizing the infrastructure, new capacities are being created for promising product ranges such as vegetarian and vegan products. Hilcona's head office in Schaan is being modernized as part of a multi-year development plan. The first stage was completed in the reporting year with an extension for the production of filled fresh pasta. The expansion will take account of future growth and increase efficiency. At Eisberg, production in Switzerland will be concentrated at the two sites in Dällikon and Essert-sous-Champvent. The two plants in Villigen and Dänikon will be closed in the medium term.

Bell Food Group strives for climate neutrality

The revision of the sustainability strategy was an important priority for the Bell Food Group in the reporting year. The new strategy was adopted in January 2022 and comprises eight topics with specific targets. In the area of greenhouse gas emissions and energy, the Bell Food Group aims to achieve climate-neutral operations (Scope 1-2) by 2035.
-> More detailed information on the new strategy and the Bell Food Group's commitment to sustainability will be available in the Sustainability Report 2021, which will be published in early summer 2022.

Outlook

The markets will remain volatile and unpredictable for the foreseeable future due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. The Bell Food Group assumes that the effects of the coronavirus pandemic will diminish in 2022 and a slow normalization will occur. However, it is not yet possible to predict what this new normality will look like. CEO Lorenz Wyss adds: "It is possible that certain changes caused by the pandemic will persist and have a lasting impact on our business performance".

Increasing normalization will have a positive impact on the Convenience division, which will resume its role as the Group's growth driver. The Bell Switzerland division, on the other hand, will not be able to continue the strong performance of the past two years to the same extent. This is particularly true if the return of shopping tourism, which already occurred to some extent in the reporting year, continues. However, this core business will continue to make a significant contribution to the Group's success. In addition, the Bell International division will make further progress and round off the strategic orientation of the Bell Food Group in a meaningful way.

About the Bell Food Group

The Bell Food Group is one of the leading meat and convenience processors in Europe. Its range includes meat, poultry, charcuterie, seafood, convenience and vegetarian products. With various brands such as Bell, Eisberg, Hilcona and Hügli, the Group covers a wide range of customer needs. Its customers include the retail and food service sectors as well as the food industry. Around 12,000 employees generate annual sales of over CHF 4 billion. The Bell Food Group is listed on the Swiss stock exchange.