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Akzente News from Nordzucker | Issue 2 | July 2013 175 years of Nordzucker Sustainable. Dedicated. Together. EU sugar market regime Decision made: The sugar market regime will be extended for the last time by two years until September 2017. Previous year surpassed again Revenues and earnings rose significantly for the third year in a row. Follow us Sustainability Report submitted – Nordzucker saves energy and CO 2 .

Akzente<br />

News from <strong>Nordzucker</strong> | Issue 2 | July 2013<br />

175 years of <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

Sustainable. Dedicated. Together.<br />

EU sugar market regime<br />

Decision made: The sugar market regime will be extended<br />

for the last time by two years until September 2017.<br />

Previous year surpassed again<br />

Revenues and earnings rose significantly<br />

for the third year in a row.<br />

Follow us<br />

Sustainability Report submitted –<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> saves energy and CO 2<br />

.


| Rubrik | Reihe oder Ergänzung |<br />

80,000,000<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> is investing EUR 80,000,000 across the entire Group<br />

in this financial year, surpassing the previous year once again.<br />

2


| Editorial |<br />

“We are on the lookout for ways in which<br />

we can develop the company further so<br />

as to continue to be able to operate as<br />

successfully as we are today even in a<br />

different environment.”<br />

Dear Shareholders, Dear Readers,<br />

The previous financial year will go down in the history of <strong>Nordzucker</strong> as the most successful<br />

to date. We saw significant growth in revenues and earnings for the third year in<br />

a row. However, none of this would have been possible without an outstanding team<br />

that brings ideas and energy to the entire Group.<br />

Our excellent earnings are most certainly a reason to celebrate. Yet there is another<br />

one: 175 years! The first sugar factory in the present-day <strong>Nordzucker</strong>’s region was<br />

established in Klein Wanzleben 175 years ago and is still in use now. This makes it one<br />

of the foundation stones of today’s company. In the years and decades that followed,<br />

more and more factories were built. Early shareholders had a vision for the future: they<br />

recognised the opportunities presented by new technologies and, through their dedication,<br />

secured a long-term market outlet for their sugar beet.<br />

Today, we once again look to the future together. The markets remain volatile,<br />

meaning that price movements will continue to present a challenge for us in the future.<br />

By the same token, the structure of sugar producers in Europe will undergo changes.<br />

We also now know that the sugar market regime will come to an end in 2017. We are<br />

thus facing changes in many different areas, but we are preparing for all of them. We<br />

are making investments throughout the entire Group – in equipment to save energy,<br />

to improve logistics and for product safety. Furthermore, we are on the lookout for<br />

ways in which we can develop the company further so as to continue operating as<br />

successfully as we are today even in a different environment.<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> was and is a company heading towards the future. The very first<br />

shareholders were aware of this and it is just as important today to continue on this<br />

path together.<br />

I wish you all a pleasant summer.<br />

Best regards,<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> has invested<br />

in a new juice purification<br />

facility at its site in Clauen.<br />

Hartwig Fuchs<br />

Akzente July 2013 3


| CoNtENtS |<br />

Report: Two in one<br />

Since 2008, the annual beet campaign<br />

in the Polish town of Chełmża has been<br />

accompanied by a raw sugar campaign.<br />

20 22<br />

Summertime, berry time …<br />

Europe makes jam – with the help<br />

of products from SweetFamily and<br />

Dansukker.<br />

PANORAMA<br />

6 Sustainable. Dedicated. Together. – <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

celebrates its 175th anniversary<br />

8 Previous year surpassed again – <strong>Nordzucker</strong> continues<br />

to grow strongly with rising revenues and earnings<br />

10 Decision from Brussels: The EU sugar market regime<br />

will end in 2017<br />

11 How will things proceed from 2017?<br />

11 Hartwig Fuchs: “Accelerating towards a new<br />

world of sugar”<br />

12 A late, cold start to the beet year<br />

A LOOK AT THE MARKET<br />

16 European Commission approves additional imports<br />

from the global market<br />

CLOSE-UP<br />

18 20 · 20 · 20: Boosting the competitiveness of beet with<br />

20 tonnes of sugar<br />

19 Responsibility, dedication, courage and appreciation:<br />

four values – one company<br />

20 Two in one – a visit to the Chełmża plant<br />

13 Interview: “Not a record year”<br />

13 <strong>Nordzucker</strong> tests yield potential of the paper pot<br />

method<br />

14 Follow us – <strong>Nordzucker</strong> publishes its third<br />

Sustainability Report<br />

15 Key investments made for the 2013 campaign<br />

SWEET STORIES<br />

22 Summertime, berry time – strawberries are Europe’s<br />

favourite fruit<br />

23 Summer with Dansukker<br />

23 Taste of the year: Make and enjoy jam with<br />

SweetFamily by <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

4


Talking to …<br />

People at <strong>Nordzucker</strong>:<br />

Kazimierz Kuśmierek has been working<br />

at the Chełmża plant for 38 years.<br />

IN BRIEF<br />

24 The bright world of <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

PEOPLE AT NORDZUCKER<br />

26 Kazimierz Kuśmierek: Technical Manager<br />

Sugar House and Service Center in Chełmża<br />

CLICKED ON<br />

27 Looking online<br />

RECIPE<br />

28 Rote Grütze compote in mini sponge rolls<br />

26<br />

Prof. em. Dr phil.<br />

Hans Jürgen Teuteberg<br />

was Professor of Contemporary<br />

Economic and Social History<br />

and Director of the History<br />

Department at the University<br />

of Münster.<br />

In 1747, the Berlin-born chemist Andreas Sigismund<br />

Marggraf discovered that sugar from three types of beet<br />

is chemically identical to sugar from sugar cane. His pupil<br />

Franz Carl Achard continued this research and established<br />

the first sugar beet factory in Silesia in 1802. However, it<br />

would be decades before sugar production using sugar<br />

beet would catch on. Three questions for Professor<br />

Teuteberg on the history of sugar.<br />

In 1838, a sugar factory was opened in Klein Wanzleben.<br />

How did the sugar industry develop during the following<br />

decades?<br />

“Between 1840 and 1870, when the German Empire was<br />

founded, the number of German sugar beet factories<br />

increased more than fivefold, from 54 to 304. At the same<br />

time, the amount of beet processed rose from 26,080<br />

tonnes to three million tonnes. At the end of the 1850s,<br />

beet sugar production had already reached such a level<br />

that it exceeded domestic demand and began to be<br />

exported.”<br />

What helped to drive this development?<br />

“In addition to the fiscal environment, successful sugar<br />

beet breeding and advancing industrialisation were driving<br />

forces. In the middle of the 19th century, the Frenchman<br />

Louis de Vilmorin discovered that the sugar content of<br />

beets can be increased by means of systematic breeding.<br />

At the same time, it was possible to significantly cut<br />

production costs in the sugar factories by using steampowered<br />

machines and conveyor belts.”<br />

What did this mean for sugar consumption?<br />

“Until the middle of the 19th century, most people didn’t<br />

consume sugar because they simply could not afford to pay<br />

the high prices. Sugar is a typical product of industrialisation<br />

and, together with the potato, represents the biggest<br />

change in our eating habits since the late Middle Ages.”<br />

Akzente July 2013 5


| PaNoraMa |<br />

1<br />

1838<br />

The Klein Wanzleben<br />

sugar factory is founded<br />

– a foundation stone of<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

1865 – 1900<br />

Start-up boom in Europe: The<br />

factories in Nordstemmen,<br />

Clauen, Schladen, Uelzen,<br />

Nakskov, Nykøbing, Arlöv,<br />

Örtofta, Chełmża, Opalenica<br />

and Trenčianska Teplá are<br />

opened<br />

Sustainable. Dedicated.<br />

Together. – <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

celebrates its 175th<br />

anniversary<br />

The sugar factory in Klein Wanzleben was<br />

the start of <strong>Nordzucker</strong>’s 175-year-long<br />

history. Changing legal and ownership<br />

structures, conversions, wars, destruction<br />

and ultimately a completely new building<br />

have not changed the fact that the sugar<br />

factory founded in 1838 in Magdeburg<br />

Börde is the foundation stone of all<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> factories still in existence<br />

today. <strong>Nordzucker</strong> has steadily evolved<br />

out of individual factory companies.<br />

Courage and an entrepreneurial spirit<br />

have shaped its history at many stages<br />

and played a key role in moving the company<br />

forward. Today, more than 15,000<br />

farmers from all over Europe supply 13<br />

sugar factories in seven countries with<br />

sugar beet.<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> has taken this special<br />

year as an opportunity to reflect on its<br />

roots, as well as to look forward and<br />

generate new momentum.<br />

Official celebration<br />

The official anniversary celebration on 26<br />

September represents the culmination of<br />

the year’s events. Around 500 national<br />

and international visitors are expected in<br />

Braunschweig, including customers, politicians<br />

and various representatives from<br />

associations and the general public. The<br />

day’s event will be kicked off by a ceremony<br />

accompanied by music and greetings<br />

from a number of people including<br />

the Honorary President of the German<br />

Farmers’ Association, Gerd Sonnleitner,<br />

the Minister-President of Saxony-Anhalt,<br />

Dr Reiner Haseloff, and the State Secretary<br />

from the Federal Ministry for Food,<br />

Agriculture and Consumer Protection,<br />

Dr Robert Kloos.<br />

Speeches and panel discussion<br />

“Living and doing business in a sustainable<br />

way: are we living up to our responsibility?”<br />

– This is the question being<br />

addressed by the former Federal Environment<br />

Minister, Klaus Töpfer, in a talk<br />

on sustainability in the early afternoon,<br />

helping to steer the gaze of the guests<br />

towards the future. A high-profile panel<br />

will shed light on this issue from their<br />

own perspectives and thereby add to<br />

the thought-provoking nature of the<br />

anniversary event: Carl- Albrecht Bartmer<br />

will participate to provide the farmers’<br />

1985<br />

Zucker-Aktiengesellschaft<br />

Uelzen-<br />

Braunschweig is<br />

founded<br />

1996 – 2000<br />

The company’s involvement<br />

in Eastern Europe begins in<br />

the Czech Republic, followed<br />

by Slovakia and Poland<br />

2003<br />

Union-Zucker joins<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> <strong>AG</strong><br />

2012/13<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> <strong>AG</strong>’s most<br />

successful financial<br />

year to date ends with<br />

record earnings<br />

2<br />

3<br />

4<br />

1939 – 1945<br />

Sugar is deemed “vital to the<br />

war effort”. Beet farmers and<br />

the sugar industry are called<br />

on to increase production<br />

1990<br />

Five companies join<br />

together to form the<br />

Zucker-Verbund Nord <strong>AG</strong><br />

1997<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> <strong>AG</strong> is formed<br />

2009<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> acquires<br />

Nordic Sugar and truly<br />

becomes a European<br />

company<br />

6


1 2<br />

4<br />

You can find more information<br />

here:<br />

Historical commemorative publication:<br />

The commemorative publication “175 Years of<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong>. A History of Sugar.” will be presented<br />

on 26 September as part of the anniversary. The<br />

150-page book provides details of the key moments<br />

in the company’s history in an easy-to-read format<br />

over five chapters. Research includes interviews with<br />

contemporary witnesses. The book will be available<br />

in English and German. You may order a copy of the<br />

book on the internet: www.175Jahre-<strong>Nordzucker</strong>.de<br />

(nominal fee of EUR 10).<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> will publish brochures in the respective<br />

local language for regional events which provide<br />

a summary of the key milestones in <strong>Nordzucker</strong>’s<br />

history and which each contain one page devoted<br />

to that country.<br />

3<br />

You can find additional information about the company’s anniversary, as well as news on regional anniversary events being held at <strong>Nordzucker</strong> plants in August and September at<br />

www.175Jahre-<strong>Nordzucker</strong>.de.<br />

perspective, Ulrik Nehammer from<br />

Coca-Cola will give the customers’<br />

point of view and Professor Luci Reisch<br />

will discuss on behalf of consumers.<br />

Dr Klaus Schumacher will represent<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong>’s perspective.<br />

Inka Schneider, the well-known<br />

journalist from NDR, will lead guests<br />

through the day with entertaining interviews<br />

and small cultural treats. The celebration<br />

will be brought to a pleasant<br />

end with dinner in smaller groups.<br />

Events for all employees<br />

All 3,300 employees are celebrating with<br />

us – at their own dedicated events, which<br />

range from breakfast and a family picnic<br />

to parties in the evenings. Guests from the<br />

surrounding regions and the local public<br />

are invited to the events. <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

would like to express its thanks to its<br />

entire staff for their dedication and performance,<br />

and hereby recognises the<br />

contribution of each and every person<br />

to the success of the company. tsd<br />

Akzente July 2013 7


| PaNoraMa |<br />

Previous year surpassed again<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> continues to grow strongly with rising revenues and earnings<br />

We have reduced net<br />

debt to EUR 59 million.<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> is in very<br />

good financial condition.<br />

Dr Michael Noth, Chief Financial Officer<br />

cant increase in revenues and profit<br />

thanks to the good market situation<br />

and a number of its own profit-boosting<br />

measures. Revenues rose by more than<br />

20 per cent to EUR 2.4 billion in the<br />

2012/2013 financial year. Similarly,<br />

earnings reached a new high of EUR<br />

360 million. This means that <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

comfortably surpassed the very good<br />

earnings of the previous year once again.<br />

“This is by far the best result in the history<br />

of our company,” summarised the<br />

Chief Financial Officer of <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

<strong>AG</strong>, Dr Michael Noth. “And what is particularly<br />

pleasing to see in this anniversary<br />

year: We were successful across all<br />

regions.”<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong>’s shareholders will also be<br />

pleased about the good performance –<br />

the dividend proposed to the Annual<br />

General Meeting in July 2013 will be<br />

EUR 1.80 per share. Last year, EUR 1.00<br />

per share was paid out. In this way,<br />

shareholders enjoy a fair share of the<br />

company’s good earnings, and the company’s<br />

financing is strengthened at the<br />

same time.<br />

Earnings increase by EUR 152 million<br />

Compared to the previous year, <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

was able to increase consolidated<br />

revenues by EUR 424.8 million to EUR<br />

2.443 billion in the 2012/2013 financial<br />

year. This translated into a net income of<br />

EUR 360 million for the Group. Following<br />

EUR 208 million in the previous year,<br />

this represents a clear rise in earnings<br />

of EUR 152 million.<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> benefited above<br />

all from comparatively favourable<br />

conditions in the market with higher<br />

prices for quota sugar and a larger<br />

volume of non-quota sugar sales.<br />

Earnings were also helped by<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> has posted outstanding<br />

earnings for the third year in a row. The<br />

company was able to achieve a signifilong-term<br />

savings which took effect<br />

across the Group. These are the result<br />

of the “Profitability plus” programme,<br />

which has been running for three<br />

years. It consists of a range of measures<br />

designed to last five years and with<br />

which <strong>Nordzucker</strong> intends to boost its<br />

competitiveness. “We have made the<br />

most of market opportunities and resolutely<br />

continued on our course without<br />

neglecting the ongoing development<br />

of the company. This course is paying<br />

off,” emphasises CEO Hartwig Fuchs.<br />

Share of business abroad rises to<br />

56 per cent<br />

Once again, <strong>Nordzucker</strong> generated<br />

more than half of its revenues outside<br />

Germany. “We are a strong European<br />

company established in attractive regional<br />

markets,” says Michael Noth and refers<br />

to the trend of revenues in the three<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> regions: In the 2012/2013<br />

financial year, 44 per cent of consolidated<br />

revenues came from the Central Europe<br />

region (previous year: 47 per cent),<br />

40 per cent from the Northern Europe<br />

region (previous year: 40 per cent)<br />

and 16 per cent in the Eastern Europe<br />

region (previous year: 13 per cent).<br />

Equity rises above the one-billion mark<br />

The good earnings made it possible for<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> to strengthen its equity further,<br />

lifting it above the one billion Euro<br />

mark for the first time to EUR 1.316 billion.<br />

“We set ourselves the goal of increasing<br />

the equity ratio three years ago,” explains<br />

Michael Noth. “In 2012/2013, we were<br />

able to achieve an even better equity ratio<br />

of 55 per cent – despite a greater balance<br />

sheet total.” Moreover, <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

made the most of the good year and<br />

reduced net debt to around EUR 59 million.<br />

Michael Noth is happy about this<br />

8


Annual Report 2012/2013<br />

Hartwig Fuchs, Chief Executive Officer <strong>Nordzucker</strong> <strong>AG</strong><br />

Annual revenues<br />

increased further<br />

In EUR m<br />

2,443<br />

2,018<br />

2011/2012<br />

2012/2013<br />

Thanks to positive conditions<br />

in the market, revenues rose<br />

by more than 20 per cent<br />

to EUR 2.4 billion in the<br />

2012/2013 financial year.<br />

Net income at record levels<br />

and believes <strong>Nordzucker</strong> is “in very<br />

good financial condition”.<br />

Sound foundation for sustainable<br />

growth<br />

With an eye on rising stock levels,<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> expects global sugar prices<br />

to remain at the currently low level, which<br />

means that <strong>Nordzucker</strong> expects a decline<br />

in revenues and earnings in the current<br />

financial year. The company will continue<br />

resolutely on its chosen course for growth<br />

and improved efficiency. “This is our key<br />

to sustainable strength and competitiveness,”<br />

emphasises the CEO. sdp<br />

In EUR m<br />

91<br />

2010/2011<br />

208<br />

2011/2012<br />

360<br />

2012/2013<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> posted<br />

record earnings for the<br />

third year in a row. This<br />

resulted primarily from<br />

higher prices for quota<br />

sugar, a greater volume<br />

of non-quota sugar sales<br />

as well as savings in production<br />

and administration<br />

in 2012/2013.<br />

Living our values.<br />

Creating growth.<br />

For more details, please<br />

refer to our Annual Report<br />

– also available online at<br />

www.nordzucker.de<br />

Akzente July 2013 9


| PaNoraMa |<br />

After more than<br />

45 years, the sugar<br />

market regime is<br />

coming to an end.<br />

EU sugar market regime<br />

to end in 2017<br />

Four more campaigns under the usual<br />

conditions<br />

Now it’s official: in just four years – on<br />

30 September 2017 – the EU sugar<br />

market regime will permanently expire.<br />

This market system, the core elements<br />

of which have been in existence since<br />

1968, will not be extended beyond this<br />

date. This was the agreement reached<br />

by the EU agriculture ministers at the<br />

end of negotiations with the European<br />

Commission and European Parliament<br />

on 26 June in Luxembourg.<br />

According to this, the market<br />

period valid until the end of the sugar<br />

marketing year 2014/2015 will be<br />

extended for one last time by two years<br />

until 2016/2017. This decision forms<br />

part of the comprehensive reform package<br />

which has been passed by the three<br />

EU bodies for their Common Agricultural<br />

Policy (CAP).<br />

The negotiations leading to the<br />

end of the sugar market regime represent<br />

a compromise. On 13 March 2013, the<br />

European Parliament had called for it<br />

to be extended by five years until 2020,<br />

whereas the European Commission<br />

wanted to let the sugar market regime<br />

expire in 2014/2015 without any extension.<br />

The EU agriculture ministers also<br />

spoke out in favour of an extension to<br />

the regime in March, but only until<br />

2016/2017.<br />

It has now been decided to allow<br />

the quota system to expire at the end<br />

of the sugar marketing year 2016/2017.<br />

The compromise is the result of protracted<br />

and difficult negotiations. Fulltime<br />

refineries will retain their exclusive<br />

access to imports of up to 2.5 million<br />

tonnes of raw cane sugar for the first<br />

three months of the sugar marketing<br />

year until September 2017.<br />

Less planning security<br />

The end of the sugar market regime and<br />

the associated discontinuation of the<br />

quota system on 30 September 2017<br />

means that <strong>Nordzucker</strong> and its beet<br />

farmers will lose a certain degree of<br />

planning security. The EU will also<br />

continue to collect the controversial<br />

production levy amounting to EUR 12<br />

per tonne of sugar, which has been in<br />

place since the 2006 reform, until 2017.<br />

Easier access to the global market<br />

Just how much the end of the sugar<br />

market regime will impact on the EU’s<br />

current ability to meet 85 per cent of its<br />

own demand, which has up to now been<br />

guaranteed by production quotas, remains<br />

to be seen, as does how sugar prices<br />

in the EU will be influenced by greater<br />

exposure to the global market in the<br />

future. Access to the global market will<br />

become easier for EU sugar companies,<br />

as the end of the quota system also means<br />

that the 1.37-million-tonne limit on exports<br />

of EU sugar by the World Trade Organisation<br />

will also be lifted. It also remains<br />

to be seen how the European market for<br />

isoglucose will develop following the<br />

end of the sugar market regime. sdp<br />

10


COMMENT BY HARTWIG FUCHS<br />

Accelerating towards a new<br />

world of sugar<br />

Two years, four years or seven years: how much time will the<br />

EU allow for changing the system of the EU sugar sector – a<br />

sector which is in many areas still dealing with the aftermath<br />

of the drastic reforms carried out between 2006 and 2009? At<br />

the end of June, we learned the answer: after four more campaigns,<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> will enter a new sugar industry – without<br />

a market regime. We have been given two more years than<br />

originally feared to prepare for the change – but three years<br />

less than we would have liked. A compromise. No reason to<br />

celebrate, but also no cause to stick our heads in the sand.<br />

Quite the opposite!<br />

How will things proceed<br />

from 2017?<br />

Following the drastic reforms in 2006, the time following the end<br />

of the sugar market regime will once again present major challenges<br />

for beet farmers and the sugar industry in the EU. The focus of<br />

the coming years will also be on boosting the efficiency and competitiveness<br />

of beet cultivation and sugar production. In addition to<br />

this, new systems of contracts for beet cultivation will be required<br />

to be able to manage the two-year period between crop planning<br />

and sugar sales without the market regime instruments which had<br />

previously applied. <strong>Nordzucker</strong> will continue to negotiate beet<br />

cultivation and delivery terms with the agricultural associations. A<br />

key issue will be what forms of price hedging for sugar will be in<br />

place in four years. Under consideration are systems such as those<br />

commonly used for rapeseed and wheat, for instance. Protection<br />

against sugar imports to the EU which will remain valid after 2017<br />

is also important for sugar production in Europe. This means that<br />

sugar must continue to be excluded from talks on bilateral and<br />

multinational trade agreements. <br />

sdp<br />

Quickly becoming more commercial and competitive<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> must become more commercial and competitive<br />

at a much quicker pace. That’s the key message! The fact that<br />

we have the strength required for this is a testament to the<br />

enormous progress we have made in recent years. We set<br />

our course early on – to improve efficiency and profitability<br />

on a continuous basis. Now it is for us and our beet farmers<br />

to continue on this path with dedication and resolution. And<br />

now we have a fixed deadline – which is good for us all.<br />

With the discontinuation of the quota system and the<br />

WTO export limit, the EU market will be influenced to a<br />

greater extent by events in the global market after 2017. The<br />

EU currently covers around 85 per cent of the sugar required<br />

for the food industry from domestic production. After 2017,<br />

all of the sugar produced in the EU will be available for use<br />

in food. Moreover, we will be in greater competition with isoglucose<br />

among our customers as this will also no longer be<br />

subject to a quota system. Last but not least, beet must hold<br />

its ground over the long term against competing crops in the<br />

field and also compete with a potential rise in imports of cane<br />

sugar. However, not only does the end of the sugar market<br />

regime bring new tasks, it also brings new opportunities. The<br />

lifting of the WTO limit on sugar exports means that we will<br />

be able to benefit much more from the export market – provided<br />

of course that we do well and prices allow for this. It is<br />

also certain that there will be another wave of consolidation<br />

in the EU. And <strong>Nordzucker</strong> will be actively involved in this.<br />

We will be able to master successfully the discontinuation<br />

of familiar regime instruments and the transition to a new world<br />

of sugar with passion and courage in the right places – I am<br />

sure of this! The important thing is to stand together with our<br />

farmers. And to have policies that live up to their responsibility<br />

to create new, sensible framework conditions. <br />

Akzente July 2013 11


| PaNoraMa |<br />

A late, cold start to the beet year<br />

Delayed growth particularly in the German and Danish growing areas<br />

“In Denmark crops are lagging around ten days<br />

behind “normal” years. On a positive note, we are<br />

seeing high plant populations per hectare and<br />

excellent herbicide effects in all four countries.”<br />

Christer Sperlingsson, Senior Manager<br />

Beet Supply, Nordic Sugar<br />

“The long winter, wet soil and flooded fields did not<br />

allow for early sowing. We are all the more happy<br />

that our growers in Poland and Slovakia made use of<br />

all available resources and were able to get the beets<br />

planted in just 16 days.”<br />

Dr Gerd Jung, Senior Vice President, Beet<br />

Procurement <strong>Nordzucker</strong> Eastern Europe<br />

“Just like humans, beets don’t like being cold<br />

and wet! Our 2013 beet year is likely to be below<br />

average.”<br />

Volker Bückmann, Senior Vice President, Beet<br />

Procurement <strong>Nordzucker</strong> Central Europe<br />

In 2013, sugar beet sowing began later<br />

than the five-year average in most of the<br />

countries where <strong>Nordzucker</strong> grows sugar<br />

beet. Compared with the very early<br />

compact sowing in 2012, almost every<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> beet office recorded a much<br />

later start to sowing at the beginning of<br />

April and much longer sowing periods<br />

were also widespread. In many places,<br />

orders had to be interrupted on several<br />

occasions due to late frost and heavy<br />

downpours. Sowing was fully completed<br />

in Germany, Poland and Slovakia at the<br />

end of April. Sowing in Denmark was<br />

also eleven days behind the five-year<br />

average. Only in Sweden was it possible<br />

for growers to drill their beet at their<br />

usual times – and even then there were<br />

major differences between growing areas<br />

in the west and the east.<br />

Very good initial conditions<br />

Good soil structure, mellowness due to<br />

frost and sufficient soil moisture ensured<br />

very good initial conditions across the<br />

board and thereby enabled even plant<br />

carpet levels to be achieved with optimum<br />

plant density. Likewise, the effect<br />

of herbicides was very good on the whole<br />

thanks to favourable soil moisture, although<br />

growth delays brought on by<br />

herbicide stress were observed locally.<br />

April and May were persistently<br />

cold and rainy months, particularly in<br />

Germany and Denmark. Sugar beets<br />

grew at a very slow pace and row closure<br />

was only observed at the end of<br />

June in many parts of both countries.<br />

Shortly after Whitsun, Germany was hit<br />

by local flooding and surface siltation<br />

following heavy rains. Low-lying parts<br />

of the beet catchment areas of the<br />

plants in Schladen, Nordstemmen and<br />

Clauen were particularly affected, with<br />

over 100 mm of rain per day and square<br />

metre falling on and around 25 May.<br />

Crops in Finland and Lithuania<br />

developed rapidly and very well under<br />

12


Not a record year<br />

In almost all of <strong>Nordzucker</strong>’s growing<br />

areas, beet was sown later in<br />

2013 than in previous years. How<br />

big is the actual “delay”?<br />

Dr. Pörksen: Across the Group, beet<br />

seed was sowed between two and three<br />

weeks later this year than in the previous<br />

year. However, when compared<br />

with the five-year average, we are only<br />

an average of ten days late. There was<br />

a late spring in all growing countries,<br />

which was particularly pronounced in<br />

Germany and Finland, where beet sowings<br />

were completed on average three<br />

weeks later than in 2012.<br />

What is the current situation in the<br />

beet fields? Do you see any chance<br />

for stocks to make up lost ground?<br />

Dr. Pörksen: Definitely not. The delay<br />

can no longer be recovered. Persistently<br />

cold weather, a lot of rain and not<br />

enough sunshine meant that the crops<br />

persisted for too long in the two-leaf<br />

and four-leaf stage. This was compounded<br />

by growth delays brought on by the<br />

outstanding effect of herbicides on the<br />

moist soil during 2013. Moreover, many<br />

of our growers in Germany had to deal<br />

with heavy rainfall at the end of May,<br />

including some flooded fields and siltation.<br />

Fortunately, there were not many<br />

cases of complete losses. Nevertheless,<br />

beet growth has been impacted by<br />

extremely warm, sunny weather conditions<br />

with sufficient rainfall, which<br />

meant it was also possible to partially<br />

compensate for the late sowing here<br />

and, as in Sweden, to achieve stock<br />

levels on a par with the five-year average.<br />

In Poland and Slovakia, warm<br />

weather conditions following sowing<br />

together with sufficiently moist soil conditions<br />

and regular rainfall ensured rapid<br />

field emergence and good development<br />

of crops. Growth here was also slowed<br />

by a cold snap in the latter part of May.<br />

these additional factors in many of these<br />

areas.<br />

From today’s perspective, what<br />

does this mean for the 2013 beet<br />

harvest and campaign?<br />

Dr. Pörksen: It is clear that this beet year<br />

will not be a record year. <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

will process a significantly smaller beet<br />

harvest. If everything goes well, we will<br />

achieve maximum yields on a par with<br />

the five-year average. The decision as<br />

to when we will begin processing the<br />

beets will depend on the results of the<br />

lifting tests in August. What I can say is<br />

that, from today’s perspective, I do not<br />

see any reason to start the campaign<br />

early. <br />

Interview by Susanne Dismer-Puls<br />

Overall, stock levels in both countries<br />

are healthy. Approximately half of the<br />

areas sowed saw row closure by 10<br />

June, with the remaining areas following<br />

around ten days later.<br />

Harvest outlook: about average<br />

Overall, beet development in Germany<br />

and Denmark at the end of June points<br />

to a generally below-average beet year<br />

in 2013. <strong>Nordzucker</strong> expects average<br />

yields in Sweden, Finland and Lithuania,<br />

and solidly average yields in Eastern<br />

Europe. <br />

sdp<br />

The amount of<br />

beet to be processed<br />

will be<br />

much smaller in<br />

this campaign.<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> tests yield<br />

potential of the paper<br />

pot method<br />

Early sowing and a long period of<br />

growth are the keys to success for sugar<br />

beet cultivation. The longer the frostsensitive<br />

beet can grow, the greater the<br />

chances are of achieving above-average<br />

yields. To what extent can the yield be<br />

increased through longer growth periods<br />

made possible by using young beet<br />

plants grown in advance? <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

investigates this question as part of its<br />

20 · 20 · 20 initiative in a field trial in<br />

Schleswig-Holstein.<br />

Eight-week head start<br />

In Kronprinzenkoog in Dithmarschen,<br />

around 7,000 young beet plants were<br />

transferred from the greenhouse on<br />

10 April 2013. The plants were transferred<br />

using a cabbage transplanter by<br />

the farmers Björn Göser and Hans-Reimer<br />

Thießen and have a growth advantage<br />

of up to eight weeks over the sugar beet<br />

usually drilled in Schleswig-Holstein.<br />

The plants were sown early in the<br />

greenhouse in paper pots on 19 and<br />

26 February. The paper pots are around<br />

15-centimetre-high containers made<br />

from paper that dissolve in the soil.<br />

sdp<br />

Akzente July 2013 13


Sustainability Report 2012/2013<br />

| PaNoraMa |<br />

Sustainable production from the field to the end<br />

product is becoming increasingly important.<br />

Defined product, environment, safety<br />

and social standards are documented.<br />

Follow us: take an interest in our work<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> publishes its third Sustainability Report<br />

Follow us<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong>’s<br />

Sustainability Report:<br />

available in print and<br />

online.<br />

“Follow us” is the confident title of <strong>Nordzucker</strong>’s 60-page<br />

report. The idea is for people to follow us or “take an interest<br />

in our work”, as people do on social media sites such as Facebook<br />

or Twitter.<br />

“We no longer need to call for this,” laughs Chief Operating<br />

Officer Axel Aumüller. There has long been an interest in what<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> does when it comes to sustainability. “And this interest<br />

is rising,” he emphasises. In importance and commitment.<br />

“The number of customers coming to us with questions about<br />

the sustainability of our production is increasing. This trend has<br />

been led by large customers,” explains Axel Aumüller. “Particularly<br />

food producers that buy and sell around the world have developed<br />

very clear requirements.” <strong>Nordzucker</strong> is expected to introduce<br />

defined product, environmental, safety and social standards<br />

in its production – and for these to be clearly documented.<br />

In focus: the entire process chain<br />

Indeed, with such requirements, <strong>Nordzucker</strong> customers also safeguard<br />

their own sustainability approach. “And this now extends<br />

along the entire supply chain for an increasing number of our<br />

customers,” highlights Axel Aumüller. “From the field to our<br />

factories and, finally, to the end consumer.”<br />

Setting an example for generations<br />

“Follow us” also means “follow our example”. A number of the<br />

interim results documented by <strong>Nordzucker</strong> in its current Sustainability<br />

Report are truly trend-setting. It is no coincidence that<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> will celebrate its 175th anniversary in the days and<br />

weeks to come. Wherever beet grows, it has been growing for<br />

generations: up to today with sustainably rising yields and the<br />

decreasing use of resources. “This anniversary would be unthinkable<br />

without the generations of farmers who have been<br />

investing in the fertility of their soil over the long term – certainly<br />

something which is not to be taken for granted,” summarises Axel<br />

Aumüller. By the same token, the high standards in <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

factories achieved by continuous improvements in energy efficiency<br />

and CO 2<br />

savings are also recognised. “In this respect,<br />

we are a popular model for others. But we are also in a good<br />

position across the Group in matters relating to product safety.”<br />

14


Energy efficiency and CO 2<br />

savings at <strong>Nordzucker</strong> set an example.<br />

Dedicated: <strong>Nordzucker</strong> provides a comprehensive<br />

summary in its Sustainability Report.<br />

Values provide guidance in daily business<br />

In its Sustainability Report, <strong>Nordzucker</strong> provides interesting<br />

insights into all stages of the sugar production process: points<br />

of contact for discussion and orientation by way of the guidelines<br />

according to which <strong>Nordzucker</strong> works. Key objectives how to live<br />

the <strong>Nordzucker</strong> values and how to incorporate our sustainability<br />

goals into daily work will be dealt in the <strong>Nordzucker</strong> Code of<br />

Conduct which will be available online soon.<br />

Voluntary compendium, not just for customers<br />

“Our Sustainability Report is not something that is required by<br />

law,” emphasises Marion Schaefer energetically. “This is something<br />

we do voluntarily and which our business partners really<br />

want to read,” explains <strong>Nordzucker</strong>’s sustainability coordinator.<br />

“It’s a compendium for experts and anyone who wants to know<br />

more about us.” There is particular interest within the company<br />

from sales, according to Marion Schaefer. Externally, the report is<br />

on hand during every customer audit. In future, there will also be<br />

an abridged version for customer talks. It is also useful during discussions<br />

with banks or in the factories if a visit from the environmental<br />

authorities is due, for instance. <strong>Nordzucker</strong>’s 2012/2013<br />

Sustainability Report has been in print since the beginning of<br />

April and is also available online: anyone can leaf though it<br />

virtually at <strong>Nordzucker</strong>/<strong>downloads</strong>. <br />

sdp<br />

Key investments<br />

for the 2013 campaign<br />

Energy, water, product safety, logistics<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> concludes two large, multi-year investment projects<br />

for the 2013 campaign: The new EUR 17.5 million evaporation<br />

dryer is entering service for the first time at the Danish plant of<br />

Nakskov; the Clauen factory also is launching the new juice purification<br />

system installed at a cost of EUR 5 million. At the same<br />

time, preliminary work to install an additional evaporation dryer<br />

and a vertical crystallisation tower (VCT) will be completed in the<br />

Swedish factory of Örtofta – two new large projects with a total<br />

volume of EUR 23.3 million, which will both be ready for use in<br />

2014. Energy and CO 2<br />

savings are also top priorities in 2013. The<br />

evaporation dryer in Nakskov will cut annual energy consumption<br />

across the entire plant by a quarter in the future thanks to the innovative<br />

technology used to dry pulp. Furthermore, <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

is investing around EUR 3.7 million in the enhancement of product<br />

safety. Starting in autumn, packaging machines and loading<br />

stations at all <strong>Nordzucker</strong> factories are to be equipped with socalled<br />

all-metal recognition. Ongoing projects for the futureoriented<br />

treatment of wastewater have also taken big steps. A<br />

further EUR 1.7 million has been invested in the Nordstemmen<br />

plant for the third construction phase of the project launched<br />

there to improve odour emissions. After having completed the<br />

anaerobic system in the previous year, the Polish <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

plant in Opalenica will complete the modernisation of its wastewater<br />

treatment plant with the commissioning of the aerobic<br />

system. The new facilities in Opalenica were installed for a total<br />

of EUR 3.9 million. Moreover, a new, 80,000-tonne silo is currently<br />

under construction in Uelzen, which will enter service during the<br />

next campaign <br />

sdp<br />

Akzente July 2013 15


| A LOOK AT THE MARKET |<br />

THE SUGAR MARKET<br />

European Commission<br />

approves additional imports<br />

from the global market<br />

European Commission:<br />

1.2 million tonnes of<br />

additional sugar.<br />

Since the 2006 amendment to the EU sugar market regime,<br />

the EU has only been able to meet around 85 per cent of its<br />

needs in the food industry from domestic production. The EU<br />

has since become a net importer of sugar and, in particular,<br />

has become dependent on imports from so-called ACP / LDC<br />

countries (ACP = former colonies of France and the UK in Africa,<br />

the Caribbean and the Pacific; LDC = least developed countries).<br />

However, these imports do not come automatically. If the<br />

world market price is above the prices which can be achieved<br />

in the EU, there is only a limited incentive for the ACP / LDC<br />

countries to sell their sugar to the EU.<br />

In order to prevent a potential shortage of supply in the EU<br />

market, the European Commission has the option of ensuring<br />

a greater supply of sugar. There are two particular instruments<br />

available here: on the one hand, the conversion of non-quota<br />

sugar to quota sugar which may then be used in the food sector<br />

and, on the other, allowing additional imports with reduced<br />

import duties. As Akzente reported, the European Commission<br />

already made use of both of these instruments in the two previous<br />

sugar marketing years.<br />

Approving sugar for human consumption would relieve the<br />

market<br />

Given that the European Commission also expects supplies<br />

to be tight in the EU’s sugar market in the current 2012/2013<br />

financial year, it decided in January 2013 in the Management<br />

committee to bring an additional 1.2 million tonnes of sugar<br />

to the EU market. “With human consumption of around<br />

16.9 million tonnes, this amounts to around seven per cent<br />

of annual sugar consumption in the EU’s food sector,” says<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> market expert Dr Klaus Schumacher. Half of this,<br />

totalling 600,000 tonnes, comes from the conversion of nonquota<br />

sugar to quota sugar. The applications for this approval<br />

were made by the sugar producers (maximum 50,000 tonnes<br />

per legally independent corporate entity). The European<br />

Commission divided the release of the 600,000 tonnes into<br />

four tranches, each with 150,000 tonnes. In view of the fact<br />

that the volumes applied for were much higher, allocation was<br />

made on a pro-rata basis. If non-quota sugar is released then<br />

levies must be paid. These are below the usual rate as a result<br />

of the special measures taken (see image). The remaining<br />

600,000 tonnes approved in January may be imported from<br />

any non-EU country with reduced import duties. This volume<br />

may not be imported all at once, but must be divided into a<br />

total of four tender procedures.<br />

Four tender procedures in 2013<br />

“In these so-called import tender procedures, the interested<br />

companies make a bid as to the amount of import duties per<br />

tonne they would be prepared to pay for a certain quantity of<br />

additionally imported sugar. Approval is then given to the bidder<br />

who offered to pay the highest import duties,” explains<br />

Klaus Schumacher. In the course of these four tenders, offers<br />

were accepted for a total of 371,000 tonnes of raw sugar and<br />

174,000 tonnes of white sugar. The reduced import duties<br />

were between EUR 141 and EUR 195 for raw sugar per tonne<br />

and between EUR 161 and EUR 240 per tonne for white sugar.<br />

The European Commission expects that the additional<br />

supply of 1.2 million tonnes of sugar will ensure sufficient stock<br />

levels until the end of the 2012/2013 sugar marketing year,<br />

and thereby ensure adequate supply in the market. tm, nt<br />

16


731 per tonne [as of April 2013]. As a<br />

result, it is above the reference price of<br />

EUR 404 per tonne.<br />

Interview<br />

In contrast to the situation around two<br />

years ago, when the global market price<br />

was sometimes above the EU price, it<br />

is currently at EUR 391 per tonne, well<br />

below the EU market price and even on<br />

a par with the reference price. The gap<br />

is therefore now widening significantly<br />

in the other direction. However, the<br />

statistics do not tell the whole truth, as<br />

they reflect prices from contracts which<br />

are currently in effect and which were<br />

signed last year in some cases. The market<br />

situation today is different. Prices for<br />

new contracts and for spot sales have<br />

fallen.<br />

Global market prices are currently at<br />

a much lower level than in July 2012.<br />

The reason for this is that harvests have<br />

been good, leading to an increase in<br />

stockpiles in the global market. Nevertheless,<br />

the European Commission expects<br />

supplies to be tight in the EU’s<br />

sugar market during the current sugar<br />

marketing year. Reasons cited for this<br />

include higher consumption levels than<br />

previously expected and the resulting<br />

smaller stockpiles. Consequently, the<br />

European Commission has introduced<br />

measures to bring an additional 1.2 mil-<br />

lion tonnes of sugar to the EU market by<br />

means of import tenders and allowing<br />

non-quota sugar to be used as well.<br />

Nina Tatter spoke to the Chief Marketing<br />

Officer, Mats Liljestam.<br />

How high are sugar prices in the<br />

global and EU markets at the moment?<br />

Mats Liljestam: The average EU market<br />

price as indicated in the EU Commission’s<br />

price reporting has been very stable in<br />

recent months and is currently at EUR<br />

What do you think of the release<br />

of 600,000 tonnes of non-quota<br />

sugar by the EU and the lower customs<br />

duties for imports of another<br />

600,000 tonnes of sugar from the<br />

global market? What does this<br />

mean for <strong>Nordzucker</strong>?<br />

Mats Liljestam We have been involved in<br />

the process to release non-quota sugar<br />

but, in actual fact, this measure wasn’t<br />

really necessary as the market has a sufficient<br />

supply of sugar. On the contrary,<br />

these steps result in increases of stockpiles<br />

in the EU and we had to inform our beet<br />

farmers that they should grow less beet<br />

for the 2013/2014 campaign. <br />

Measures used by the European Commission to avoid supply shortages in the EU<br />

Measure 1: Allowing additional imports with reduced<br />

import duties:<br />

Measure 2: Approving the conversion of<br />

non-quota sugar to quota sugar for use in<br />

the food industry:<br />

Reduced customs<br />

duties for imports in<br />

2012/2013:<br />

(in EUR per tonne)<br />

Raw sugar 141–195<br />

White sugar 161–240<br />

Normal customs duties<br />

for sugar imports to<br />

the EU:<br />

Duties levied for the<br />

European Commission’s<br />

special measures:<br />

between EUR 148 and<br />

EUR 224 per tonne<br />

Normal duty:<br />

EUR 500 per tonne<br />

Raw sugar 339<br />

White sugar 419<br />

Akzente July 2013 17


| CLOSE-UP |<br />

Boosting the competitiveness<br />

of beet with 20 tonnes of sugar<br />

20 · 20 · 20 meeting in Reinstorf<br />

Dr Niels Pörksen:<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> is preparing<br />

for the future with<br />

20 · 20 · 20.<br />

What adjustments need to be made so<br />

that 20 per cent of beet farmers are able<br />

to produce 20 tonnes of sugar per hectare<br />

in 2020? The beet procurement team<br />

is investigating this question across the<br />

entire Group. A large 20 · 20 · 20 meeting<br />

took place in Reinstorf on 13 June.<br />

The motto of the day was “Agri and<br />

beet shape the future”, since in order<br />

for beet to remain competitive with<br />

other crops, yields need to be increased.<br />

“This is the starting point of<br />

our project 20 · 20 · 20. Since the project<br />

was launched in 2011, we have already<br />

handled a variety of different issues,<br />

such as the autumn strip tilling process<br />

on heavy soil, combined drilling or avoiding<br />

harvest losses. Now the task is to<br />

think ahead with our entire <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

team of advisers,” says Chief Agricultural<br />

Officer Dr Niels Pörksen.<br />

The task in the future, even more<br />

so than today, will be to increase the<br />

competitiveness of beet – one of the<br />

conclusions of the meeting. Just how<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> benefits from international<br />

exchange was evident in the working<br />

groups. Colleagues from the various<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> countries came together to<br />

discuss the issues of increasing yields,<br />

cultivation advising, communication,<br />

sustainability and cooperation with<br />

farmers.<br />

“Conditions are different in every<br />

natural environment. However, there are<br />

regions in our Group that are comparable<br />

to each other. As a result, sharing<br />

and discussing the results and findings<br />

from various countries with colleagues<br />

is a key part of our international cooperation<br />

in the Group. Together we will<br />

achieve our objective,” underscores<br />

Niels Pörksen.<br />

The aim of the meeting in Reinstorf<br />

was not just to discuss what had<br />

already been achieved and how the<br />

results could be used in other natural<br />

18


Four values – one company<br />

Responsibility, dedication, courage and appreciation<br />

Senior Vice President Jannik Robin Olejas<br />

led the discussion.<br />

Together and international: <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

colleagues from every site exchanged views<br />

and ideas.<br />

Which values guide our actions? Employees<br />

at all <strong>Nordzucker</strong> sites have<br />

been discussing and examining the<br />

four values of responsibility, dedication,<br />

courage and appreciation for more<br />

than a year. The aim is to turn these<br />

values into a common framework for<br />

action across the entire Group.<br />

In order to achieve this, last year’s motto<br />

was “The values are being discussed”. The<br />

values were discussed in all <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

countries and at every level in order to<br />

develop a shared understanding. The<br />

focus of this second year is now to see<br />

that they become a standard part of<br />

everyday work at <strong>Nordzucker</strong>. The aim<br />

is to live out the values in matters both<br />

big and small – forming the basis of our<br />

actions in negotiations, meetings or employee<br />

appraisals. The same applies to<br />

Group guidelines and standards, which<br />

are also set on the basis of these corporate<br />

values. “With our values, <strong>Nordzucker</strong> is<br />

in the process of creating its own <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

culture that transcends both cul-<br />

tural and national borders. With their help,<br />

we will work together even better, regardless<br />

of whether we work in Germany,<br />

Poland or Finland, in an office or a factory.<br />

The values bring us closer together and<br />

this will strengthen <strong>Nordzucker</strong>. I am proud<br />

of the level of dedication our employees<br />

have brought to the process and its development,”<br />

said CEO Hartwig Fuchs.<br />

Discussing and reflecting on the values<br />

is not an end in itself: “Each of us has<br />

our own individual set of values, of which<br />

we may not even be fully aware. By talking<br />

about this, we develop a shared understanding<br />

and raise awareness for the application<br />

of these values. The values are also<br />

a good tool if, for instance, decisions need<br />

to be made,” says Bianca Deppe-Leickel,<br />

project manager in the values team.<br />

The fact that the values process at<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> is being supported by the<br />

whole company shows how much the<br />

staff is interested in it. Colleagues who<br />

want to be value ambassadors and<br />

advance the process forward have been<br />

found throughout the company. nt<br />

environments, but also to gather new<br />

ideas. “In the working groups, we<br />

looked for ideas that were a bit off the<br />

beaten track. After all, if you look at<br />

where we are now and where beet<br />

cultivation was 10 or 15 years ago, you<br />

can see that a big leap has been made.<br />

Much of what we do today was unimaginable<br />

back then. This is why<br />

we were looking for ideas for new<br />

things in Reinstorf that would be difficult<br />

to implement today,” says Jannik<br />

Robin Olejas, Senior Vice President Beet<br />

Procurement Northern Europe, who led<br />

the groups. <br />

nt<br />

Responsibility<br />

Courage<br />

Engagement<br />

Dedication<br />

Appreciation<br />

Akzente Juli 2013 19


| CLOSE-UP |<br />

Tomasz Soliwodzki<br />

has been Director of<br />

the Chełmża plant and<br />

sugar refinery since<br />

2004. The factory has<br />

been running a raw<br />

sugar campaign every<br />

year since 2008.<br />

Two in one<br />

The Chełmża plant runs a sugar beet and raw sugar campaign every year<br />

The Dvadesetprvi Maj lies shining with<br />

its red hull and the four white loading<br />

cranes in the port of Gdynia. The bulk<br />

carrier from Africa took about three<br />

weeks to get to the Baltic port to north<br />

of Gdansk. It will take nine days for the<br />

raw sugar in the port to be completely<br />

unloaded, after which the carrier can<br />

depart on a new trip. The raw cane<br />

sugar is destined for the Chełmża refinery.<br />

A visit to <strong>Nordzucker</strong> Polska and<br />

the Chełmża site:<br />

“When we equipped the Chełmża sugar<br />

factory to produce sugar from beet as<br />

well as refine raw cane sugar in 2008, we<br />

were the first sugar refinery in Poland.<br />

Today there is a second and it belongs<br />

to a competitor,” explains Tomasz Soliwodzki,<br />

Director of the Chełmża plant<br />

and refinery.<br />

Between spring and summer, the<br />

refinery turns raw sugar into white sugar<br />

for around two months. The sugar comes<br />

from Central America, South America or<br />

Africa. “The sugar is brought to us by truck.<br />

They reverse up the ramp and unload.<br />

The sugar is brought to the warehouse<br />

by a screw conveyor and conveyor belts,”<br />

continues Tomasz Soliwodzki.<br />

We enter the factory’s raw sugar warehouse.<br />

Around 4,000 tonnes of raw sugar<br />

can be stored here. During our visit, there<br />

is only a small amount of raw sugar in<br />

the warehouse. A wheel loader tips the<br />

brown raw sugar, which resembles sand<br />

from a distance, though coarse grating<br />

onto large piles. Conveyor belts located<br />

below take the sugar to the first stage<br />

of the refining process: “The sugar we<br />

receive needs to be cleaned before it<br />

can be processed. In the affination mash<br />

stage, which we rebuilt in 2008, the sugar<br />

crystals are washed and then spun in the<br />

affination centrifuges to separate them<br />

from non-sugar substances. This is the<br />

first stage of cleaning,” says Kazimierz<br />

Kuśmierek, who led the conversion from<br />

“conventional” sugar factory to combined<br />

factory as production engineer.<br />

This produces the syrup, which is then<br />

purified and filtered before being decolourised.<br />

Decolourisation plays a critical<br />

role in the refining of raw sugar: a special<br />

resin absorbs the colouring. The syrup<br />

is then concentrated, filtered and crystallised.<br />

The decolourisation station in<br />

Chełmża is one of only a few in Europe.<br />

We continue on through the refinery<br />

and Kazimierz Kuśmierek explains:<br />

“The real difference between refining<br />

and campaign operation is that white<br />

sugar is produced simultaneously at<br />

three stages during refining in our plant.<br />

At the same time, three additional products<br />

are created, known as recoveries,<br />

which need to be processed again. They<br />

are dissolved and boiled a second time<br />

until white sugar has formed. In contrast,<br />

we receive one product during the beet<br />

campaign, white sugar, and two products<br />

that need to be dissolved and processed<br />

again at the same time.”<br />

The plant runs a beet campaign<br />

every year in the autumn and winter,<br />

and processes the beet of local farmers<br />

just like other <strong>Nordzucker</strong> plants. The<br />

time between the end of the beet campaign<br />

and raw sugar refining is short<br />

and the window for the necessary conversion<br />

work is correspondingly small:<br />

“In order for the factory to become a<br />

refinery, flow paths between the different<br />

pieces of equipment have to be<br />

changed. This involves resetting various<br />

flaps differently and recalibrating around<br />

200 dummy discs,” explains Tomasz<br />

Soliwodzki. <br />

nt<br />

20


Everything under control: whether in the<br />

midst of raw sugar refining or a beet campaign<br />

– the control centre monitors every<br />

stage of production.<br />

Are the colour values correct? Quality<br />

controls are carried out in the laboratory.<br />

Chełmża is approximately 20 kilometres away from Toruń. Beet was first processed here in 1882.<br />

During the campaign, around 70 trucks bring<br />

their raw sugar to the factory every day.<br />

Raw cane sugar from Africa<br />

Ships carrying raw sugar arrive at the port in<br />

Gdynia in order to supply the refinery with sugar<br />

for its two-month-long refining campaign..<br />

Automated<br />

At the service centre in Chełmża, 1 kg packs, 25 kg<br />

sacks and big bags of up to 1,000 kg are filled. The<br />

service centre’s performance was expanded and optimised<br />

with the addition of the third palletising robot<br />

in 2012.<br />

Akzente July 2013 21


| SWEEt StoriES |<br />

Summertime,<br />

berry time ...<br />

Strawberries are Europe’s favourite fruit<br />

The summer can be stored in jars – in<br />

the form of home-made strawberry,<br />

apricot, currant or blackberry jam. All<br />

you need is fruit, preserving sugar or<br />

normal sugar and jars for the finished<br />

jam. This way you can continue enjoying<br />

summer even in the winter. The methods<br />

used to make jam vary considerably<br />

throughout Europe.<br />

“Polish households mainly use<br />

strawberries, apples and plums to make<br />

jam. This means that tasty jam is made<br />

at home the whole summer long. In<br />

contrast to Germany, most people use<br />

normal sugar and add gelling agents<br />

such as pectin themselves,” explains Mária<br />

Cselková, Marketing & Communication<br />

Specialist at the Slovakian <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

subsidiary Považský cukor a.s. “In Slovakia,<br />

strawberries, followed by peaches and<br />

plums, are the preferred ingredients<br />

when it comes to making jam. The fruits<br />

are brought to a boil and then sugar is<br />

added. We often use normal household<br />

sugar as well as preserving sugar.<br />

Strawberry jam is also very popular in<br />

Germany. It is a top seller for the large jam<br />

producers, and strawberries are preferred<br />

over any other kind of fruit for home-made<br />

jam, just as in Poland and Slovakia.<br />

The season begins a little later in<br />

Northern Europe than in Germany or<br />

Poland. Strawberries are also one of the<br />

preferred fruits in Northern Europe. “In<br />

Finland, most customers use our Dansukker<br />

preserving sugar. Customers in the Baltic<br />

states often use household sugar without<br />

the addition of pectin. The jam is then<br />

boiled for a very long time until it has<br />

reached the desired texture,” explains<br />

Jeanette Nordenhem, Product Marketing<br />

Manager at Nordic Sugar. <br />

nt<br />

22


Summer with<br />

Dansukker<br />

Nordic Sugar gives its customers in<br />

Denmark and Sweden tips on making<br />

preserves with Dansukker products.<br />

The brochures “Det smager af sommer!”<br />

(“The taste of summer!”) form<br />

part of the summer campaign along<br />

with recipes and ideas, as well as a<br />

video on the social media sites You-<br />

Tube and Facebook. Here you can<br />

learn, step by step, how quick and<br />

easy it is to make jam yourself using<br />

fruit and berries. “We invite our customers<br />

to make their own jam. To<br />

do this, we make concerted use of<br />

different channels so that our customers<br />

receive tips in different ways,”<br />

says Product Marketing<br />

Manager Jeanette<br />

Nordenhem. <br />

Tasty: Jam made from fresh<br />

summer fruits.<br />

Make and enjoy jam with SweetFamily by <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

Fancy some jam<br />

with a hint of vanilla<br />

and lemon balm?<br />

Try the “Taste of<br />

the Year”.<br />

This year, SweetFamily by <strong>Nordzucker</strong> is offering its customers<br />

in Germany two new products for making jam. A new “Taste<br />

of the Year” and a preserving sugar with reduced calories thanks<br />

to the sweetness provided by the stevia plant.<br />

“Our preserving sugar ‘Taste of the Year’ with a vanilla and<br />

lemon balm taste is particularly suited to strawberries and brings<br />

variety to the breakfast table with its fresh and harmonious combination,”<br />

says Anne Hofmann, Product Manager.<br />

SweetFamily’s stevia preserving sugar is new on supermarket<br />

shelves and combines the calorie-free sweetness of the stevia plant<br />

with the sweetness of sugar. “Home-made fruit spread made<br />

with SweetFamily’s stevia preserving sugar contains 40 per cent<br />

fewer calories than the same amount of a fruit spread prepared<br />

entirely with preserving sugar,” says Anne Hofmann.<br />

For tasty recipes and ideas for jam and jellies, go to<br />

www.sweet-family.de <br />

Akzente July 2013 23


| iN BriEF |<br />

Holdings<br />

Nordharzer Zucker <strong>AG</strong> and<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> Holding <strong>AG</strong> propose a merger<br />

At their Annual General Meetings on 9 and 10 July, Nordharzer Zucker <strong>AG</strong> and<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> Holding <strong>AG</strong> put forward a resolution to their shareholders which<br />

proposes the merger of Nordharzer Zucker <strong>AG</strong> and <strong>Nordzucker</strong> Holding <strong>AG</strong>.<br />

The aim of the merger is to “increase influence over <strong>Nordzucker</strong> <strong>AG</strong>, to pool the<br />

interests of agricultural shareholders and to thereby strengthen the voting right<br />

at the Annual General Meeting of <strong>Nordzucker</strong> <strong>AG</strong>,” says Hans Jochen Bosse,<br />

Chief Executive Officer of Nordharzer Zucker <strong>AG</strong>, and Helmut Bleckwenn, Deputy<br />

Chairman of <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

Holding <strong>AG</strong>, adds: “We<br />

see the merger as a key<br />

strategic step. A merger<br />

with Nordharzer would<br />

reinforce our influence<br />

over <strong>Nordzucker</strong> <strong>AG</strong>.” <br />

ed<br />

Birthday<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> starts the<br />

anniversary year by donating<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> <strong>AG</strong> has provided the local church<br />

and town trust of Klein Wanzleben with support<br />

amounting to EUR 60,000 in its anniversary<br />

year. After all, it was in 1838 – 175 years ago<br />

– that the sugar factory, which has retained<br />

its importance at a European level, was established<br />

in the Magdeburg Börde by 19 farmers,<br />

craftsmen and proprietors. Klein Wanzleben<br />

has since acquired the nickname “Zuckerdorf”,<br />

which means “sugar village”. This connects<br />

the two historically successful developments<br />

of the sugar factory and seed production of<br />

KWS. <br />

ed<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> helps<br />

Donations for<br />

flood victims<br />

“<strong>Nordzucker</strong> helps”, the internal fundraising<br />

campaign for the flood victims, raised almost EUR<br />

20,000 from employees, which the company then<br />

rounded up to EUR 50,000.<br />

“We are very impressed by our employees’<br />

willingness to donate and would like to thank all<br />

donors for their support. This result is evidence<br />

of the wonderful attitude of our employees,” says<br />

CEO Hartwig Fuchs.<br />

The donation will go to the alliance of German<br />

aid organisations “Hochwasser Aktion Deutschland<br />

Hilft e.V.” <br />

ed<br />

20 · 20 · 20<br />

Ideas to put into practice<br />

Lower Saxony beet day in Vinstedt<br />

The Lower Saxony beet<br />

day in Vinstedt, in the<br />

county of Uelzen, took<br />

place on 12 June 2013<br />

on the farm of Friedrich-<br />

Karl Bodin under the<br />

motto “Ideas to put into<br />

practice”. The overriding<br />

objective of the joint<br />

event held by the Lower<br />

Saxony Chamber of<br />

Agriculture, the beet farmers and shareholders’ association (Rübenanbauer-<br />

und Aktionärsverbandes Nord e. V.) and <strong>Nordzucker</strong> <strong>AG</strong> was<br />

to present forward-looking, production measures that could help to<br />

optimise the commercial viability of sugar beet further.<br />

“This beet day provided valuable ideas that can be put into practice<br />

in sugar beet production. It is a question of looking at all areas of<br />

production technology from the point of view of increasing yields and<br />

simultaneously cutting costs,” said Dr Niels Pörksen in praise of the event,<br />

which saw the participation of the entire national and international beet<br />

management team. The group was then given an extensive tour of the<br />

facility, kicking off an intensive 20 · 20 · 20 meeting (see report). ed<br />

24


Axel Aumüller<br />

COO <strong>Nordzucker</strong> <strong>AG</strong><br />

Personnel<br />

Axel Aumüller is the new Chairman<br />

of the Sugar Industry Association<br />

Axel Aumüller, member of the Executive Board of <strong>Nordzucker</strong> <strong>AG</strong>,<br />

was elected Chairman of the Sugar Industry Association (VdZ) on<br />

11 June 2013.<br />

He succeeds Horst W. Mewis, who left office for age reasons<br />

after nine years. The <strong>Nordzucker</strong> COO is delighted to have been<br />

elected and describes the focus of his future work as follows, “The<br />

challenges for the sugar industry are growing constantly; we can<br />

see this particularly in the fields of food legislation, environment<br />

and energy. This means we need a strong Sugar Industry Association,<br />

which speaks with one voice and is committed to representing the<br />

interests of its members externally. And that is something I am proud<br />

to do.”<br />

The Sugar Industry Association, based in Bonn, is the consortium<br />

of sugar-producing companies in Germany. In addition to its<br />

function as an employers’ association, it campaigns for the interests<br />

of the industry in the areas of the economy, law and technology. <br />

ed<br />

Birthday<br />

Säkylä turns 60<br />

In 1953, the Säkylä sugar factory in Finland ran<br />

its first campaign, which means that it celebrates<br />

its 60th anniversary this year. The factory began<br />

its work at a time of rapid economic growth<br />

following the depression after the Second<br />

World War. Its success was also helped by the<br />

fact that rationing of sugar came to an end in<br />

the spring of 1953.<br />

The Finnish factory was able to process<br />

750 tonnes of beet per day during its first<br />

campaign. Over the years, its performance<br />

has improved and today an average of 7,500<br />

tonnes are processed per day during the<br />

campaign. The Säkylä sugar factory belongs<br />

to the Finnish part of the <strong>Nordzucker</strong> Group,<br />

together with the refinery in Porkala. ed<br />

Survey<br />

Farmers satisfied with<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

Positive results in Group-wide<br />

farmer survey<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> launched a Group-wide survey<br />

for all beet farmers last spring. The focus of<br />

the survey this year was questions concerning<br />

advisory services, the quality and use of<br />

informational offerings and satisfaction with<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> as a business partner. Almost<br />

5,100 farmers from seven countries ultimately<br />

participated in the survey. The advice given<br />

by beet offices and communication with<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> received a much better rating<br />

than in the last survey, particularly in Germany<br />

and Poland. The last farmer survey took place<br />

in 2011. ed<br />

Finland<br />

Premiere in<br />

Kantvik<br />

A cargo ship with a shipment of<br />

raw sugar arrived in the Finnish<br />

town of Kantvik this spring. This<br />

shipment is the first raw sugar<br />

transport which <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

“closed”, or carried out, itself.<br />

“This means handling and coordinating<br />

everything from buying<br />

the raw sugar to chartering the ship and transporting it across the sea, as well as<br />

unloading the raw sugar in Finland, was organised entirely by us at <strong>Nordzucker</strong>,”<br />

says Andreas Tausent, Senior Manager Sea Logistics & Operations, and adds: “With<br />

this successful shipment, <strong>Nordzucker</strong> now has the chance to purchase raw sugar on<br />

a more widespread basis and load it directly as well as to optimise planning and<br />

costs.” <br />

ed<br />

Akzente July 2013 25


| PEOPLE AT NORDZUCKER |<br />

Kazimierz Kuśmierek<br />

Technical Manager Sugar<br />

House and Service Center,<br />

Chełmża, <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

Polska<br />

Kazimierz Kuśmierek has been working<br />

at the Chełmża factory for 38<br />

years. He started here right after finishing<br />

his studies to become a food<br />

chemist / sugar technologist. “Our<br />

factory used to be part of a combine,<br />

which included an alcohol factory, a<br />

potash salt refinery and a dry ice factory,<br />

in addition to the sugar factory.<br />

At that time, I started in the dry ice<br />

factory and then moved on to grain<br />

and rapeseed drying,” he remembers.<br />

In 1977, Kazimierz Kuśmierek moved<br />

to the sugar factory. First he was a<br />

shift supervisor before becoming the<br />

head technologist in 1980 and head<br />

of the sugar factory in 1987. “In 2003<br />

I became a production engineer for<br />

crushing and extraction systems. Today<br />

I am a production engineer in the<br />

sugar house and am responsible for<br />

the service centre. In recent years, I<br />

have led a number of large modernisation<br />

projects, such as the upgrading<br />

of the factory to be become a sugar<br />

factory and refinery in 2007/2008. You<br />

could say that I know just about every<br />

pipe in our factory,” says Kazimierz<br />

Kuśmierek, smiling. <br />

nt<br />

26


| CLICKED ON |<br />

Looking online for <strong>Nordzucker</strong>, SweetFamily.<br />

<strong>Nordzucker</strong> Annual Report is online<br />

Digital Annual Report invites readers<br />

Leaf through our 2012/2013 Annual<br />

Report, which is now available on our<br />

website. The new format enables you<br />

to gain quick and easy access to the<br />

extensive amount of information in our<br />

current publication. You can access our<br />

digital Annual Report using the icon<br />

on the home page of our website<br />

(www.nordzucker.de) and in the<br />

“Shareholders” menu item.<br />

Sugar Forum inspires runners<br />

The Sugar Forum – an initiative of the<br />

German sugar industry – is currently<br />

using its website to inspire people to<br />

run. With tips from running therapist<br />

Joachum Janke and an interview with<br />

the European Ironman champion Timo<br />

Bracht. More information is available<br />

online at:<br />

www.mitzucker.de<br />

175jahre-nordzucker is online<br />

The “microsite” for the 175th anniversary<br />

is now online on <strong>Nordzucker</strong>’s website.<br />

Under the anniversary motto “Sustainable.<br />

Dedicated. Together.”, you can find<br />

information about the anniversary, a<br />

history of <strong>Nordzucker</strong> and information<br />

about local events during the year. You<br />

can also visit the microsite directly at<br />

www.175jahre-nordzucker.de<br />

Ideas from SweetFamily<br />

You can currently find recipe ideas for<br />

jams and jellies at www.sweet-family.de.<br />

Why not try the blueberry and strawberry<br />

fruit spread?<br />

Free Taste of the Year<br />

If you buy three sachets of SweetFamily<br />

Taste of the Year from the online shop,<br />

you will get one more sachet free. Check<br />

it out:<br />

www.sweet-family.de <br />

ed<br />

Running season has started<br />

SweetFamily: New recipes online<br />

175 years of <strong>Nordzucker</strong><br />

Imprint<br />

Published by: <strong>Nordzucker</strong> <strong>AG</strong>, Küchenstraße 9, 38100 Braunschweig, tel +49 (0)531 2411-348, fax +49 (0)531 2411-378, akzente@nordzucker.de | Editorial team (ed): Bianca Deppe-Leickel (bdl),<br />

Susanne Dismer-Puls (sdp), Oliver Ditsch, Frank Knälmann, Tomas Kocis, Mariann Mellström (mm), Thordis Möller (tm), Tanja Schneider-Diehl (tsd), Dr. Klaus Schumacher (kds), Marion Stumpe, Nina Tatter (nt),<br />

Layout: Sieler Kommunikation und Gestaltung GmbH, Frankfurt | Printed by: Leinebergland Druck GmbH & Co. KG, Alfeld | Image credits: Günter Nimptsch, Nordic Sugar (Apelöga), <strong>Nordzucker</strong>, Shutterstock<br />

Akzente July 2013 27


Rote Grütze compote<br />

in mini sponge rolls<br />

Ingredients (for 10 pieces):<br />

750 g mixed berries<br />

(fresh or frozen)<br />

1 packet SweetFamily<br />

1-2-3 Rote Grütze<br />

6 eggs (medium size)<br />

150 g “Unser Feinster”<br />

SweetFamily sugar (extra fine sugar)<br />

120 g flour<br />

250 ml whipping cream<br />

1 sachet vanilla sugar<br />

Preparation:<br />

Prepare Rote Grütze as indicated on the packet.<br />

Beat eggs until foamy, add 120 g of sugar, then<br />

beat for another 4 minutes until the foam is<br />

springy. Fold in the flour. Spread the mixture<br />

evenly on a baking tray lined with baking paper.<br />

Bake in a preheated oven (180°C, top and bottom<br />

heat) for approximately 12 minutes.<br />

Sprinkle the remaining sugar over a dishcloth.<br />

Place the hot tray with the sponge facing down<br />

on the cloth. Brush cold water over the baking<br />

paper quickly and then remove the paper.<br />

Spread half of the Rote Grütze over the sponge,<br />

roll it up lengthways and cut into ten pieces.<br />

Whip the cream with the vanilla sugar until it<br />

has thickened and serve with the mini sponge<br />

rolls and the remaining Rote Grütze.<br />

Preparation time: approx. 35 minutes<br />

Per piece approximately:<br />

358 kcal<br />

12 g fat<br />

54,6 g carbohydrates<br />

6,9 g protein<br />

For more tips and<br />

tasty recipes, visit:<br />

www.sweet-family.de

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