Milling & Baking News - December 4, 2018 - 20

Washington

Negotiators reach agreement in
principle on 2018 farm bill
include the forestry management proviagreement on SNAP she said she could sions in the House version.
Republican negotiators asserted the
support.
The absence of the House work re- provisions would enable the Departquirements provision was expected to ments of Agriculture and the Interior to
increase the likelihood of passage by the more aggressively arrange for controlled
Senate but threatened putting the bill in burns and other forest thinning efforts
while opponents said recently enacted
peril in the House.
There were a few additional issues
to iron out, she acknowledged, including what should be the limits on federal farm program payments.
Indications were the leaders of the
House and Senate agriculture committees, who lead the farm bill conference committee, referred the dis- Conaway
Roberts
Stabenow
Peterson
pute on forestry management provisions as contained in the House farm bill authorities relating to forest management
to the leaders of the Senate and House should be employed before new authori- i.e. to Senate Majority Leader Mitch ties are sought. Environmental groups
McConnell of Kentucky and Minority said the provisions would exempt some
Leader Charles Schumer of New York, and forest projects from environmental analHouse Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin ysis and loosen oversight of the Endanand Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of Cali- gered Species Act.
The resolution of the forestry managefornia - for a decision on how to proceed.
The forestry provisions in the House ment dispute as well as other details of
farm bill emerged as a major issue in the the compromise farm bill were yet to be
wake of the horrific and fatal wildfires revealed.
At the same time, one member of the
that raged across California in recent
weeks. President Donald Trump weighed farm conference committee, Represenin on Nov. 20, saying the farm bill should tative Roger Marshall of Kansas, said,

Continued from Page 1

"We're glad to report that this bill fully
protects and preserves crop insurance,
the No. 1 priority we heard from Kansans, and has nearly everything Kansans
asked for in Title I safety net programs.
We have worked around the clock to produce a strong five-year bill, and we look
forward to seeing the final version reach
the president's desk by Christmas."
Zippy Duvall, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, applauded
news of the agreement in principle saying,
"The 2018 farm bill emerging from the
conference committee is good news for
farmers amid a prolonged downturn
in the agricultural economy. Chairmen Roberts and Conaway and Ranking Members Stabenow and Peterson
made the bill a priority for this Congress, and all Americans - farmers
and consumers - are better off for it.
"Continued access to risk management
tools, assistance in foreign market development, and conservation and environmental stewardship programs within the
legislation are especially important for
farmers and ranchers," Mr. Duvall continued. "These programs will help provide
certainty to rural America at a time when
it is much needed given the financial headwinds so many family farms now face.
Additionally, the bill continues to help lowincome children, families, seniors and military veterans access the high-quality foods
produced by farm families." MBN

Financial Results

Aryzta North America revenues
lose ground in first quarter
ZURICH, SWITZERLAND - Aryzta
North America posted revenue of €366.9
million ($413.7 million) in the first quarter
ended Oct. 31, which was down 10% from
the previous year's first quarter. Organic
revenue was down 2.8%, while disposals had a negative effect of 8.7%. Volume
was down 2.1% in Aryzta North America
while price/mix was down 0.7%.
Excluding Cloverhill, which Aryzta acquired in 2014, organic growth was 1% in
Aryzta North America in the first quarter
of fiscal 2019.
"While we're making progress under the
new management team led by Dave Johnson, the North American business continues to face ongoing challenges," Kevin E.
Toland, chief executive officer, said during
a Nov. 26 conference call with analysts.
"Over the course of the last 12 months, we
have flattened the management structure,
reorganized the business to reduce head
20 / December 4, 2018

Milling & Baking News

office headcount by 25%, completed, in
July, a $7.4 million annual cost saving reorganization of the wider U.S. management
team, and, last February, sold off the lossmaking Cloverhill business.
"The new team is working hard at realigning the business to better service our
core B2B customers. However, it will take
time and further effort to fully stabilize
the business; and, from there on, start to
improve performance. As previously outlined, we expect cost inflation to remain an
ongoing issue in North America, with key
labor and logistics cost lines not yet being
fully recovered by pricing initiatives."
Zurich-based Aryzta Group companywide had first-quarter revenue of €862.3
million ($972.6 million), which was down
5.2% from the previous year's first quarter. Aryzta Europe had revenue of €430.4
million, down 1.1%, and Aryzta Rest of
the World had revenue of €65 million,

which was basically flat from a year ago.
"Overall, we are encouraged to see stability in organic revenues in the first quarter,"
Mr. Toland said. "Post the successful capital
raise, we remain resolutely focused on our
core, the frozen B2B bakery market, and
that the management team are resolved to
implement our multi-year turnaround strategy. As mentioned earlier, a stronger capital
base and available liquidity will allow us
to transition from a position of perceived
commercial stress to a position of stability.
Increasing financial flexibility, liquidity, and
the implementation of Project Renew will
enhance performance and, over time, deliver growth.
"Revenue for the first quarter is in line
with our expectations. For fiscal 2019,
Aryzta expects underlying performance
to be stable, and the early benefits from
Project Renew to flow into the P.&L. The
company expects mid- to high-singledigit organic EBITDA growth for fiscal
year 2019, applying budget fiscal 2019 exchange rates on a like-for-like basis, and
excluding any disposals." MBN
bakingbusiness.com / world-grain.com

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Milling & Baking News - December 4, 2018

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