Nordzucker
| Aktiengesellschaft | |
| Industry | Food processing |
| Founded | 1997 (Braunschweig, Germany) |
| Headquarters | Braunschweig, Germany |
Key people | Hartwig Fuchs (CEO), Hans-Christian Koehler (Chairman of the Supervisory Board) |
| Products | sugar, liquid sugars, sugar specialities, animal feed, bioethanol, carbolime |
| Revenue | € 2,443 million (2012/2013)[1] |
| € 360 million (2012/2013)[1] | |
Number of employees | 3,290 (2012/2013)[1] |
| Website |
www |
Nordzucker AG, headquartered in Braunschweig, Germany, is Europe’s second largest sugar manufacturer. The production of sugar, liquid sugars and other specialities for the application in the nutrition, beverage and sweets industry as well as other sugar specialities like refined sugar, icing sugar, lump sugar, preserving sugar, tea sugars and flavoured sugars for consumers are the core business of the company. In addition to that, Nordzucker produces animal feed and bioethanol from sugar beet. In the 2012/2013 financial year, the company produced 2.8 million tons of sugar from 17.3 million tons of sugar beet which were cultivated on 266,000 hectares. Sales added up to EUR 2.4 billion and net income came to EUR 360 million. 40% of sales were generated in Northern Europe, 44% in Germany and 16% in Eastern Europe.[1]
History
The Nordzucker AG was formed by the merger of the Braunschweig-based Zuckerverbund Nord AG (ZVN) and the Uelzen-based Zucker-Aktiengesellschaft Uelzen-Braunschweig (ZAG) in 1997.
Between 1999 and 2003, Nordzucker expanded to Eastern Europe and acquired its Polish plants Chełmża and Opalenica and its Slovakian plant Trenčianska Teplá.[2]
In 2003, the Nordstemmen-based Union-Zucker Südhannover GmbH was integrated into the Group.
In March 2009, Nordzucker acquired the Copenhagen-based sugar manufacturer Nordic Sugar A/S (formerly known as Danisco Sugar) for EUR 730 million. Nordic Sugar runs sugar plants in Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Lithuania.[3]
The roots of the company date back to the year 1838, when the Klein Wanzleben plant, the first plant of the company that is still in service today, was founded.[2]
Company profile and business segments
Locations
The Nordzucker plants are primarily located in Germany and Eastern and Northern Europe.[1]
Sugar plants
- Clauen (Germany)
- Klein Wanzleben (Germany)
- Nordstemmen (Germany)
- Schladen (Germany)
- Uelzen (Germany)
- Opalenica (Poland)
- Chełmża (Poland)
- Trenčianska Teplá (Slovakia)
- Nakskov (Denmark)
- Nykøbing Falster (Denmark)
- Örtofta (Sweden)
- Kėdainiai (Lithuania)
- Säkylä (Finland)
Liquid sugar plants
- Groß Munzel (Germany)
- Nordstemmen (Germany)
Refineries
Other locations
- Headquarters in Braunschweig (Germany)
- Nordic Sugar head office in Copenhagen (Denmark)
- Bioethanol plant Klein Wanzleben (Germany)
In addition to that, the company runs sales and distribution locations in Riga (Latvia), Vilnius (Lithuania), Tallinn (Estonia), Reykjavik (Iceland), Oslo (Norway), Dublin (Ireland) and Athens (Greece) as well as an office in Brussels (Belgium).
Brands
For households, Nordzucker mainly distributes its products under its “SweetFamily” and “Dansukker” brands via food retailers. SweetFamily is distributed in Germany, Poland and Slovakia whereas Dansukker is distributed in Scandinavia and the Baltic states.
Other business segments and investments
- Besides sugar, Nordzucker produces other products from sugar beet such as animal feed and molasses. In addition to that, the company markets carbolime as a fertilizer, which is a byproduct of sugar production.
- At the Klein Wanzleben location, Nordzucker annually produces app. 130,000m³ of bioethanol from sugar beet and sells it to the fuel industry.[4]
- Together with the Malaysian company Purecircle, Nordzucker runs the joint venture NP Sweet. The company is located in Copenhagen and develops and markets products on the basis of the natural sweetener stevia.[5][6]
- Nordzucker has a 35.4% stake in the Czech sugar production company Tereos TTD a.s.. The company is located in Dobrovice and runs two sugar plants.
Management
The Executive Board consists of the following members:[7]
- Hartwig Fuchs (Chief Executive Officer (CEO)), since 2010
- Axel Aumüller (Chief Operating Officer (COO)), since 2009
- Mats Liljestam (Chief Marketing Officer (CMO)), since 2009
- Dr. Michael Noth (Chief Financial Officer (CFO)), since 2009
- Dr. Lars Gorissen (Chief Agricultural Officer (CAO)), since 2014
The Supervisory Board consists of 21 members, including 14 shareholders’ representatives and 7 representatives of the workforce. Hans-Christian Koehler is the chairman of the board.[8]
Shareholding structure
Main investors of Nordzucker AG are the two holding companies Nordzucker Holding AG (84.1%) and Union-Zucker Südhannover GmbH (10.8%). 5.1% of shares are free-float. In contrast to its competitor Südzucker AG, Nordzucker AG is not listed at a stock exchange.[9]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Annual Report 2012/2013" (PDF). Nordzucker AG. Retrieved 28 March 2014.
- 1 2 175 Years of Nordzucker – A History of Sugar, Braunschweig, 2013.
- ↑ Foodbev article. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
- ↑ CHEManager online article. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
- ↑ Foodnavigator article. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
- ↑ PureCircle press release. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
- ↑ Nordzucker website - Executive Board. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
- ↑ Nordzucker website - Supervisory Board. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
- ↑ Nordzucker website - Shareholder's structure. Retrieved 24 April 2014.