It included the re-election of John Bradford and Ian Mason as grower directors, and Dr Andrew Crane as a non-executive director.
The remuneration report for the year ended April 20, 2024 was also adopted, while the B Class meeting approved the long term incentive award for CEO Paul Serra and the non-executive director’s fee sacrifice B Class share acquisition plan.
Results from the financial year 2024 (FY24) were also presented, indicating another year of strong growth across the SunRice Group.
It signified the highest Group revenue and highest total fully franked dividend in the company’s 74-year history.
Revenue was $1.88 billion, up 15 per cent on the prior year, while the fully franked dividend was 60 cents per B Class share.
“It is 12 months since I was formally appointed CEO of the SunRice Group after last year’s AGM, and it has been a privilege to have been part of a year in which the Group delivered another strong performance,” Mr Serra said.
“Our results in FY24 demonstrate the resilience and effectiveness of our business model and Growth Strategy.
“They showcase the strength of the Group’s brands, our growers, our talented team, as well as our operational excellence in navigating an unstable business environment to deliver growth globally. They also demonstrate our continued focus on delivering value for both our A and B Class shareholders.
“The Group’s outlook remains positive for FY25, with the business well positioned to manage the significant headwinds, with the support of our capable Board, management and broader team in place.”
Despite external impacts that weighed on the Australian Rice Pool Business, the Group delivered a naturally determined Crop Year 2023 (CY23) paddy price of $430 per tonne for medium grain.
The Group’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of $143.9 million and net profit after tax of $68.2 million, were up 23 per cent and 24 per cent respectively on FY23.
The CY23 paddy price and FY24 total dividend demonstrate the group’s ongoing focus on delivering value to both A and B Class shareholders.
The CY24 Riverina harvest was another large crop at about 618,000 paddy tonnes.
Several factors continue to weigh on anticipated returns, including the large carry over of Riverina crop into CY25, and increased rice supply from Northern Hemisphere markets returning from drought conditions, which is placing pressure on tender markets.
As a result, the CY24 paddy price range remains unchanged at this time, at $370 to $430 per tonne for medium grain.
With successively large crops in CY23 and CY24, the Group has healthy carryover levels and with another large crop expected, is facing a unique situation.
To help maximise returns for growers, a two-pool system for CY25 has been implemented targeting about 500,000 paddy tonnes, comprising 450,000 paddy tonnes of medium grain and 50,000 paddy tonnes of speciality varieties.
The Chairman and Group CEO met with Riverina growers recently to discuss the detail of this two-pool system, and SunRice continues to watch catchment inflows as the seed ordering process commences.
Following a strong year of growth in FY24, the SunRice Group is seeking to repeat the performance at both the top and bottom line in FY25.
Against this backdrop, the Group is prepared to navigate through challenges, including a softening in sales prices in some markets, increasing pressure from lower price offerings, unfavourable foreign exchange on imports, ongoing disruption to the global shipping industry, and cost pressures in global non-medium grain rice supply, energy and labour.
The group continues to focus on branded product sales, however, implementing effective pricing strategies will be challenging in FY25; particularly in markets where consumers are facing increasing cost of living pressures, which impact discretionary spending and are driving more trading down to lower priced products.
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