Acomo N.V. (ACOMO) Earnings Call Transcript & Summary

Good afternoon, and welcome to the Acomo Capital Markets Day. I'm sure you enjoyed the delicious lunch outside and that you are ready for the presentations we have ahead. A warm welcome to those joining the live stream. My name is Jean-Mari Pretorius and I'm Acomo's Group Risk and Internal Audit Manager, and I'm honored to be your host for this significant occasion for Acomo. We have a great agenda lined up for you with keynote speeches from our business leaders, a Q&A session and networking drinks at the end of the day. Please note that the safety exits are here marked at the bottom of the stairs. Before we start with the business presentations, we will first welcome our guest speaker from the Erasmus University here in Rotterdam. Dr. Wouter is currently the Academic Director of the executive program, leadership in commodity trade and supply networks. He has a substantial history as a senior research fellow and lecture and as published in multiple international peer-reviewed journals. Today, he will be sharing his insights in the role of the merchant. Everyone, please give a warm welcome to Dr. Wouter Jacobs.

Well, thank you for the nice introduction. Welcome here, everybody at the Erasmus University Rotterdam. Thank you for the Acomo leadership to invite me to come and speak to you here as an introductionary notes. Maybe before we start, it's good to realize that Erasmus University Rotterdam has actually been founded a little -- a bit more -- a little over 100 years ago as the Dutch center for higher education for commerce and trade. It was actually private entrepreneurs, merchants from the Port City business community that came together and said, let's build a center for learning here in Rotterdam. And after the Second World War, this center became the Erasmus University Rotterdam. So trade and merchants have been very foundational for the Erasmus University. What I'm going to do today with you. I'm going to talk you through the merchant world, the way I see it. And I will do that in a little less than an hour. And hopefully, it gives you something to chew on or at least spark your imagination and I'm, of course, available for some Q&A at the end of my presentation. So a little bit more about me. I'm the Founding Director of the Erasmus Commodity & Trade Center, a dedicated platform of learning at the Erasmus University, which I founded together with Reinette Sluijk, sitting there in the corner, together with partners from the business. So we had, at this moment, at 14 industry partners in energy, trading, metals, agricultural trading and also a few banks that are partners. I'm a university professor, I just come out of a class. So I just taught my students. I told them I'm not dressed up for you like this. Normally, I wear sneakers and very casual. I'm a geographer, I have my PhD in 2007, I'm a father of 3 kids. The oldest one is getting in his puberty years. And I like football. And I'm a Star Wars nerd, just to -- that you are aware of. So what sparked my interest because I did a PHD in geography, I end up here at Erasmus University, Department of Economics, spending at least the last 10 years building content around commodities trading. And what sparked me is I'm an academic, I'm always curious. I want to know what's happening in the world around me. And that's why I looked at initially at ports or the big port here in Rotterdam, and their role in international supply chains and whatsoever. And I more or less stumbled by accidents to the players that were behind the cargoes that are being transshipped through the port. And suddenly I realized, this is what really fascinates me. How do these cargoes end up here and move onwards. And all these raw materials are so essential to everything we do in our life. We use it for our food, for our shelter, for all the devices that we use that makes [ us ] life pleasant. They are very the basic foundations of society. Without them, there will be no society. Nonetheless, not much is known about the commodities and the way they are traded, who are involved in it. And the more I started to look into it, I became even more fascinated that it's about a world of shipping, logistics, of course, but also about the world of finance, and about the rule of risk. And looking at commodities allows you to -- in a way, allows you to look at status of the world economy and where we are heading with the world. And since then, I realized this is what I want to teach in a university. I think it's very important that students at the Erasmus University become aware of this. And since then, I've been building content, courses together with Reinette, and executive program, which I already referenced to and I have founded by platform. So that sparked my interest and which I continue to do the mission of our Commodity and Trade Center is to nurture ideas and talent for tomorrow's trade. So I see that as my core mission. Like I said, I'm also a Star Wars nerd. So I structured my contribution today according to the Star Wars scenario, if you like. So I'm going to start with a historical overview of trade and that alone can last for 3 hours or entire week but I don't have that and surely you don't have that time. So I will keep that limited. But it gives you an idea how trade, how foundational it is in the past and also today. May the ARPs be with you. We're going to look a little bit more closer into the business model of a trading company, explain the differences between a merchant and a trader, and the various qualities that are being traded around the world. And begun the trade wars have, citing Master Yoda from Star Wars. We're going to look at changing landscape of global trade. And yes, what happened last week says enough, I guess. So a long time ago in a galaxy far away. So trading, yes, sets the imagination. Everybody has an image of the Silk Roads of way back when merchants from the Middle East traded with the Far East, using the camels and bringing valuable resources from A to B. The other picture is -- I nicked it from McKinsey. So I didn't came up with it myself, but I think it's a very interesting perspective. It connects with the Silk Roads, but it brings us all the way to -- all the way where we are right now. Do I have a point here? Yes. So this graph gives you a perspective of the world center of economic gravity. You have to imagine there are, of course, pull and push factors. They're pulling from various sites. So the center of gravity is in the middle of the most strongest forces that pull on it. So that's why in the year 1 AD or 1 year after the birth of Christ, the center of economic gravity was located in the north of Afghanistan. Not that there was the most economic activity, most economic activity was not on the map here in China and the other here in the near East, Levant, Middle East, Eastern Roman Empire. And in the middle is the center of gravity. And as you can see, had stayed there for a very long time, for at least 1,000 years and only around 1500, it started to move westwards and northwards. What happened in 1500, I always ask my students, or near the year 1500? The discovery of America. The end of the East Roman Empire in a way. It started to move westwards with industrialization, First World War, Second World War, all the way near Greenland in -- just after the Second World War when America's share of the world economy was at its biggest. And then it starts to move backwards east and south ever since with the entrance of industrialization of Asia, Japan in the beginning, 1919. And then in 2000, it goes very quick because what happened in 2001? I hear you think. China entering the World Trade Organization. And yes, it goes very quick. And according to this graph, we are around here, somewhere north of Kazakhstan. So the point is, trade is always reconciling imbalances between supply and demand. Centers of economic gravity shift across the world. And it actually goes back where we were 2 years ago, if we let history take its course, and some folks clearly don't want to do that. I will touch upon that later. So taking a little bit a more European perspective, remember, around 1500 Constantinople felt (sic) [ fell ], the merchants that were emerging here, trading on the North Sea, Baltic Sea and the Italian merchants suddenly lost their lucrative trade route into China. So they become -- they started to panic. How can we still trade with the most lucrative market, China, if our enemy is in between. So they said, well, here's some capital, take risk and just go to the end of the Earth and see where do we find another route to China. And they ended up in America and the whole economic geography changed. So in the 15th century, we see these first merchants appearing in Bruges, and I always love this story, where they were starting to trade with the traders from Northwest Europe, and they all gathered in the same hotel, if you like, owned by the Van Buerse family. And that became the Buerse, the place where you conducted business. And that type of institution has become foundational for modern day capitalism, right? The fortunes of Bruges ended when their ports silted up. It moved to Antwerp. That's where the first proper exchange building was built for trading commodities. The fortunes of Antwerp changed because of geopolitics. The city got sieged by the Spanish King and a lot of the merchants from Antwerp moved to Amsterdam. And the innovation that took place there is even more foundational for modern day capitalism because there were private enterprises in search for trading opportunities. They needed to employ a lot of capital. Where do you get that from? Not from the government. So they come up with a very ingenious device or instrument, basically, the joint stock company, allowing private trade in private shares of companies to raise capital, to engage in trade. And also the type of products changed in the beginning, whale oil, herring, grains, all the stuff that Northwest Europeans at that point were good at. But as the world opened up, also products that are still being traded today, by companies like Acomo, entered the markets here in Northwest Europe. This whole system of mercantilism was very successful. It spurred competition between the Dutch, the Portuguese, the Brits. It spurred innovation. Compass, mapmaking, you name it. And let's be honest, also a lot of conquest and plunder. That world moved further to the west and changed again when we see the emergence of America as an industrial powerhouse and a financial market that can power it. And we see in these intermediate places between New York and the Great Plains, cities like Chicago, pioneering the futures and options trade, capitalism reinventing itself again, moving ever more westwards. This system became very successful as it is the foundation of modern day capitalism with its origin in the trade of commodities. Fast forward, we see America dominating, like I said in the first map, the international trading system, especially after the Second World War in what is referred to as Pax Americana or the American Peace, where institutions such as the Bretton Woods, which is basically referring to the World Bank, IMF and later, the Washington Consensus in the late '80s where we decided -- where it was decided that deregulation of international markets is the way forward, letting private enterprise take the initiative back from the states and it was very successful. It resulted in an integration of trade. A lot of trading agreements, free trading agreements were institutionalized, and we saw a disintegration of production where manufacturers located their industrial activities there where they have the most favorable production factors, a.k.a. cheap labor. And with 2001, we see China entering the World Trade Organization. We see this enormous growth in value of international trade and its relative share in global GDP. But that was til now, I will say. If we look at global trade patterns, and I'm not talking about consumer goods or electronics, I'm looking at raw materials, commodities. We see it has, at least in the last time I looked in 2017 and this database is around USD 6 trillion. It's amazing. If you look at the trade and financial derivatives, it's actually still relatively peanuts. Nonetheless, USD 6 trillion is an enormous market. And it's traded all across the globe with, of course, China being the largest consumer of commodities, whether it's energy, agricultural products or metals and minerals. So if we look at these commodity trading firms, it's not that they all move to China to conduct their business. That's where they sell their goods to, but they sell to other -- all other countries as well. But where have these merchants typically been located? Well, they're still relatively fixed and conveniently located, let's say, in the middle, in Europe -- and now it all fails. Is there somebody who's -- because I'm not capable -- They're taking care of... So these merchants are the ones that are still taking care of that, and they're conveniently located in the middle. Why? Because they are in between the Asian and American markets. So they can basically carry the trade from Asia into the Americas. And it's also that it has been historically here in Amsterdam, but also in Switzerland. The neutrality of certain places gives the traders an advantage. And of course, in the case of Switzerland, some tax incentives will help. I now have to go through all this back. Nothing is still happening. Just as we're getting into the trading company itself. So when they are starting to fix -- So that gives you an idea about this historical geography of international trade. There is no -- it has never been fixed in time and across geographies. May the ARPs be with you. That's, of course, a reference to "May the force be with you", but the ARPs refer to the trading opportunities that exist for merchants. So merchants always try to buy low, sell high, to keep it simple. But the arbitrage opportunities exist because there are anomalies happening in the geographical dispersed supply and demand balance. The commodities consumed in China are not growing in China. So if you want to make tofu, you need soybeans, the soybeans come from Brazil, you ship it, you buy it cheap in Brazil, you sell it high in China. Key in that business model of a trader is the information asymmetry. Traders capture value by means of their informational advantage that they have in these markets. They transform commodities in time, space and form. That's why I like to refer to them as the invisible hand. The invisible hand of the market is articulating price signals upon which merchants and traders act, looking for that arbitrage opportunity. And in doing so, they transform commodities in time by storing it when there is no demand for it, releasing it when the demand is there. And now I need to move back. You see all my nice slides. Here, I was already there. So getting back into that business model, let us first quickly define what is a commodity. Well, the clinical definition is it is a basic good used in commerce that's interchangeable with other goods of the same time. So it doesn't matter whether it's in a tank in Rotterdam or in Singapore. A more philosophical definition, and I always love to bring Karl Marx in, especially at the Capital Markets Day event. At first glance, a commodity seems a commonplace sort of thing, easily understood, but analysis show that it's a very queer thing indeed, full of metaphysical subtleties and theological whimsies. Well, I think that explains why I've been spending 10 years of my career trying to understand this and share that with other students. So thank you, Karl Marx for that. A bit more cynical definition is commodity trading can be defined as selling something that you don't own to someone who doesn't want it. Okay. That's a little bit cynical. But it gives you the perspective that you can have on natural resources such as commodities. And these natural resources, like I said, we have needed for everything in our daily lives. You can categorize it in energy, agri commodities, metals and minerals, and they have certain characteristics. Like I said, the geographical dispersed supply and demand is key, but it is also a relative scarcity as you can always burn more jungle to grow soybeans, if you like, not that we are doing that and for good reasons, but there's always a relative scarcity. It's an investment class because you can store it and it's interchangeable because it has certain standardized qualities and that fungibility, that interchangeability, that's key. There's also another extra class, which I would like to highlight, which are commodity ingredients. These are the pulses, the nuts, the tea and the spices I referred to earlier. And they differ with, let's say, the more commonly understood commodities that are listed on the exchange in Chicago, is that they are not fungible. They're very custom customer-specific ingredients. It's not an investment class for -- to trade on the exchange because there is no listed financial futures contract being traded on the exchange. And yes, also in coffee, you have different qualities. But within ingredients, it's not standardized. So that makes commodity ingredients a little bit different than the more commonly known commodities such as oil and gas. So commodities have price discrepancy on the exchange, all that trading on the exchange create a price, and it's transparent for everybody to look into. For ingredients, this is not happening. For listed commodities, you have these future contracts, these financial derivative instruments that allows for risk mitigation, but also for speculation. Such instruments do not exist in commodity ingredient markets. That means that a type of class of players in the market are not active yet in the commodity ingredient space, such as large investment funds or institutional investors. And like I said, there's far more differentiation and flexibility in the quality specs where there is limited fungibility and no standard financial derivative contract. So that brings me to that business model of this commodity trader, which I was referring to when technology was failing with me. They basically arbitrate on these geographical and temporal differences in supply and demand, articulate it in a price signal. And traders, they direct the resources to the highest value uses in response to price signals. There is no deeper understanding about that. There is no -- it's not a charity. It's business. You want to direct the resource where you can obtain the highest value, and that's articulated in the price. They add value by transforming these commodities in space by bringing them from a place of abundance to a place of scarcity by balancing the demand -- supply and demand in time. So a couple of months from now, the demand might be higher than now. So it's better to store it rather than flood the market. And they also transform commodities in form by processing the commodities, refining it or blending it to a certain spec that has value for a customer. And they do all this by transforming also uncertainty into manageable risk while securing the physical supply of their ingredients, raw materials, commodities for client industries and customers globally. And for this, it capture value actually from the information asymmetry that's there in the system. So traders need to be very informed about everything that has an impact on their business, which has an impact on supply and demand, on trade routes, supply chains, anything that can have an impact, the weather. But that information asymmetry is diminishing. It's -- in a way that information is much more widely available. So there are differences between the various trading houses that you are more familiar with. So there are merchants that are typically move physical goods around the supply chain. And you have the speculative traders, the paper traders that do not want to touch anything of those physical commodities. The just want to trade the risk by the futures contract, which are typically financial hedge funds and these kind of players. And also large industrials have their own trading desk. The difference between a trader and a merchant is that the merchandiser basically move goods from A to B across the supply chain. The trader takes positions on that market. It's 2 different things. However, in a world where you have instant information like now, the competitive advantage is how you can anticipate where the world is going to move. You need to anticipate and synthesize various complex forms of information, translate this into a strategy and execute on that strategy to make a difference. The advantage of moving goods across the supply chain is that you have an information flow happening that players, let's say, behind the desk in New York don't have. You are capable of knowing exactly what's happening on -- in the origin of your commodity in the country of origin, you know what's happening across the supply chain. That gives you an advantage. Begun the trade wars have. We live in a VUCA world, a world characterized by volatility. For traders, that's actually a good thing because they trade on the price differential. Uncertainty is what traders typically are good in, transforming uncertainty into manageable risk. Complexity and ambiguity is something that traders are getting used to and where they need to invest to in developing the right skills, employing technology, learning along the job. I was preparing this presentation, but then I throw out all the pictures and I thought, well, I only need one to tell this entire story. Donald Trump with his tariffs. But more importantly, this is happening in a world where the interconnectivity between humanity's greatest challenges is actually becoming more intense, whether it's the energy transition, climate change, demographic growth, these markets are getting more and more interconnected. Food production is related to energy, energy is related to metals and all need capital to secure supply. These commodities are also being weaponized. It becomes a geopolitical race, but the challenges will not disappear. Climate change is here. Demographic growth, we are moving to a world with 9 billion people that all need to be fed. They need materials for shelter. They need materials for means of production. They need energy to keep them warm. So the business environment is getting more challenging. Then, of course, my students always come up with one silver bullet, namely AI, it will solve everything. Thank God, there is AI. And actually, if you look at digital technology and AI, it is happening in this space. Algos that trade in high frequency, self-executing their trades, it's happening, especially in power and financial oils. But beyond that, actually, not that much. In analytics, yes, that's where it really starts to -- can become a game changer as the information landscape is getting more and more complex, whereas the access to information is more and more widespread. So the way that you can interpretate that type of information, that can give you a difference and AI is an important tool for that. But in the trade execution and then in the back office, change is still slow, but the cost of employment have dropped considerably. Nonetheless, I always like to bring in this graph by Gartner, the Gartner Hype Cycle. We see this innovation and then all this hype where you have a peak of inflated expectations. And then we move through a trough of disillusionment that this particular technology will not solve the world's problem as of tomorrow. And then slightly, but surely, we see a slope of enlightenment and the technology does start to generate value and wider benefits for society and industry. But I think what we are here, we are not even at the bottom of the trough of disillusionment about AI, but it will come for sure. So why does size matters in this commodity merchant business? It's because the cost of trading are going up. Thank you, President Trump. The risk environment is getting more complex and volatile. The interconnectivity between all these markets is the result of that, but also the additional regulation by governments that are being imposed. And for companies to make a difference now is that you need access to capital, credit lines, technology, but above all, skills, skills to interpret data, skills to build trust across the value chain, skills to identify arbitration opportunities and skills to employ company resources effectively so that you can secure supply to your customers globally. So conclusion, and I'm sorry about the technological interruption. We live in a VUCA world. That's for sure. And I think everybody agrees here. These merchant traders, they have evolved, but are still key to manage supply and demand imbalances in time and across base to transform uncertainty into manageable risk, analyze and synthesize very complex information and have the capability to act upon that. Trust and reliability across the value chain are key. It remains very much a human business based upon relationships where you can make the difference. And on an aggregate level, it allows societies to benefit from a more efficient allocation of scarce resources, delivering value at the right price, at the right time, at the right place. And it is in this VUCA world that these capabilities and skills of merchant traders are key to deliver value to trade. I think the relative value of having relationships across the value chain actually increases in this VUCA world. I would like to end with a quote from Milton Friedman, the famous economist who said the invisible hand of markets allows for the efficient allocation of resources. The invisible hand of governments actually work the opposite direction. Thank you very much. Now I think a little bit time for questions.

So in this VUCA world where things get more complex, do you expect consolidation amongst merchants and traders where the requirements go up maybe from a capital perspective and a knowledge perspective and a reach perspective where you see just a couple dominating some value chains? Or do you see continued fragmentation? What do you expect there?

It depends, of course, on the type of market that you are looking into. But clearly, you can see the consolidation already taking place. So I think, like I said with that slide, size does matter in the end. It's all about costs in a way, how can you reduce that? How can you be most cost competitive. And at the same time, you need to have the reach to substitute particular markets with each other. And you need to have the skills and the capital -- access to capital to act upon opportunities that arrive. Yes, that favors size indeed. So I do think that consolidation rounds might even be an unintended consequence of all kinds of noble policy articulations, in particular in Europe, where we want to have all kinds of traceable goods being imported into our markets according to all kinds of regulatory standards that brings in a lot of additional costs that only the biggest one actually can take upon, whereas, yes, smaller traders might find that more difficult. At the same time, I do think that in specific niche markets, there are always remain opportunities to be active in. And also, indeed, I referred to this AI hype in a way, but companies that are capable of employing technology in the right way can actually already make a difference and compete on cost better than larger companies can do. So it's a nuanced answer in that respect. Yes.

How do you see the impact of the financial traders on the market in the future? Will it -- even more increased volatility? And how do you see that evolving and impacting the physical traders?

Yes, you see that already that big funds, when they move in, they clearly have an impact on the volatility of the markets. But it also brings a lot of additional risk capital liquidity in the market. So that's, in a way, good, I would say. It gives the academic answer to, let's say, the extent to which big funds and algo trading has a direct impact on the volatility. The word is not out. The conclusion is not there yet. Obviously, they have an impact. It will become more in other markets. But that's why I think in specialties, there's still -- it's still too soon to say that hedge funds are feeling comfortable enough to make a -- play a role there because there are no instruments for them to play with in the first place.

But it's changing and they are not very regulated, I guess?

These financial markets are highly regulated. It's in an exchange environment, and you have to abide by certain rules and you trade via the exchange. So these are relatively regulated markets.

The market can grow because the trade [indiscernible] like the financial traders are not fairly regulated, I guess, Bill Wang and so on. They can play around with institutions and go broke in a few weeks. You've seen Enron in the past. Everybody was regulated until there weren't.

Yes. Enron is an example, but that's where trade needs to be fair. And if somebody is nicking the game, yes, it's bad for everybody because everybody lose trust in the trading mechanisms. We have seen it before where certain market corners were taking place. Yes. And if it's done manipulatively and it basically results in a disallocation of resources and it results in the lack of trust in the system. So these rotten apples should be eliminated. And in a free market, they will in the end. Does that answer your question or not?

Well, I'm wondering if something has changed compared with Enron and so on in the past and with the great financial crisis, Citadel and all the others, are they more -- do you think the system is better than it was in the past? Or do you believe that it can blow up again like in the past and [indiscernible] markets?

You can never rule it out that some guy is deliberately manipulating the system to its short-term gains. But yes, once that this comes into the open, yes, it blows in their own face. They will lose there.

A lot of casualties on the side...

Unfortunately, but is risk-taking by definition. And as long as you do that according to the rules, that's fine. And then you have to be creative. You have to find for creative solutions and identifying opportunities and arbitration possibilities, of course. But as long as you do this within corporate culture that, let's say, stimulates behavior, stimulates competition in the right way and not trying to cheat, then these are the companies that will also last for longer. The companies that are -- that have been here for 100 years, they have been there because they attract -- have the right strategy, attract the right type of people, employ the right type of people, have the right type of mindset, how to win in competitive markets, and that's not by cheating. Is there always some guy that uses doping to win the race? Possibly. Of course, you cannot rule it out. But you also have to need to have a trust in the market that it can rinse itself and clean itself. Yes, and it comes at casualties, unfortunately. But that's why these people need to be punished. And what I learned from big commodity trading houses is that they take that very seriously. And of course, there always will be rotten apples, but being compliant to certain standards and be creative in a competitive market, that's the way to win, but not by cheating the market. And I think it's in the end, also normal to have certain bust and...

And do you think that the financial players will grow faster than the others? Or do you think they will...

If you look at a company like Citadel, yes, that's amazing, of course. But they're not really interested in actually the product and delivering that to a customer so that he obtains value or utility. Citadel is not interested in that. Citadel is interested to make money out of trading financial contracts. And that's, I would say, the necessary evil to have them in the market because they provide liquidity to offtake risks in those markets. So that's my answer to your...

So you're not scared that there are second LTCM in the future? And that's my last question.

Like I said, you cannot rule it out. There might be a rogue algorithm or rogue AI that manipulates markets in a way we kind of couldn't have imagined it right now. And indeed, the risk of rogue actors in a geopolitical complex space also increases. So you cannot rule out that certain malign actors deliberately want to manipulate the market out of -- not out of commercial gains, but out of geopolitical reasons. We have seen earlier the corner of hedge funds by retail investors that were trading contracts, the shares of -- what was it, blockbuster movie, some outdated business concept. And they cornered that particular market. That was out of a sort of ideological Robin Hood kind of idea. But you can definitely not rule out that out of more geopolitical concerns, there are active manipulations taking place for sure.

So you've indicated the size matters for different reasons. Do you see a trend of, let's say, FMCGs of this world outsourcing some of their purchasing or trading? And yes, can you elaborate on that for that reason?

Yes. Well, the extent to which that is already happening, I don't have that picture, let's say, in data. But I can imagine that a lot of these companies and brand owners at the end outsource indeed a lot of their procurement to merchant houses that are more comfortable with risk, so to speak. Yes. I think that is something that we can expect. Yes.

You showed us earlier in your slide show the size of global trade. What's your estimate of the impact that tariffs are going to have on that value of trade? Sorry, $64 trillion question.

Yes, yes, yes. Yes. Well, maybe I should take the simple approach of Trump and make an index and divide it by 2 and minus 20%. Now I think the impact will be -- yes, the size of American trade destined for the U.S. market compared to the global trade, I think it was actually -- it wasn't that big at all actually. I was surprised to learn that. So yes, it has an enormous impact. And the impact can be that there might be escalatory actions taking place or substitution effects that people now move their supply chains to the countries with the lowest tariffs into the U.S., that kind of mechanism, traders are creative. So that surely will happen. But to have a quantitative number here, how that will impact, I don't have at this moment yet.

Do you have a message to the Dutch government or the European politicians? Because around Europe, things are going to be a bit more corrupt. I think Trump just watered down the anticorruption laws in the U.S. Banks in Europe are watched very carefully in terms of what they finance and who they finance. Is this world of trade and [ mercantilism ] not moving outside of Europe to areas where the regulatory environment, capital flows are less strict than they are in Europe. I mean, is Europe not on the losing end of this global play where things are getting -- the biggest bully on the courtyard wins, right?

Yes. That's at least what we see, well, whether they win, that's -- that time will tell, of course. I wouldn't go to that -- I wouldn't advise my government in Europe or in the Netherlands to go along that road and, let's say, go into this decline in sort of ethical standards that we have. But I do think we need to stop being naive. Even my own university has been talking a lot about the positive impact that we want to achieve, while the world around us is a big, bad place. I don't say that we don't -- we have to stop making a positive impact, but we should be not naive that a quite -- a vast majority of the people or the, let's say, governments around the world have different standards. So I think we should be pragmatic or less dogmatic is maybe the right answer, not only for the moral reasons, but also we need security of supply of goods. Europe is short energy, so that means we need to get energy from somewhere. We want to achieve energy transition. That means that we need to have access to metals, minerals that are not in Europe, that are located in -- across the equator. In order to have access to these metals, we need to invest. We need to build trust. We need to understand the local needs. But if we then start to articulate somewhere in Brussels that whatever we're going to do, we need to trace it completely back to the origin and it should be fully traceable, sustainable, et cetera. We might want to -- we might lose that particular race to other buyers that have less ethical standards. I'm not saying that we then should get rid of our ethical standards. I think we can be proud of that, but please be a little bit more pragmatic rather than dogmatic. That would be my advice. Yes. So no more questions. Okay. Then thank you for your attention once again. I wish you a very good remainder of the session today. Me and Reinette will be joining you for some drinks. So I'm sure that we have time to discuss further these interesting topics. Thank you.

That was indeed a thought-provoking session. Thank you, Dr. Jacobs, for your dedicated time and the insights that you provided. Now it's time for a short intermission. We will be back at half past 2 for the next session. So it's a perfect time to stretch your legs and get ready for the presentations ahead. But don't stray too far because we'll be back shortly for the second half of the event. [Break]

Okay. Welcome back, everyone. We hope you had a refreshing break. Let's dive right back into the proceedings of the afternoon. Firstly, good afternoon, and welcome to the Acomo Capital Markets Day. Thank you to each and every one of you that are joining us today as well as those joining the live stream. We are very pleased to be able to welcome all of you who have been with Acomo for a long time now as well as those who are new to the Acomo Group and its companies. Today marks our first official Capital Markets Day, and we are so honored to host you here at the International Erasmus University in Rotterdam. My name is Jean-Mari Pretorius, and I'm Acomo's Group Risk and Internal Audit Manager, and I am honored to be your host for this significant occasion and to guide you through the presentations of today. The purpose of today's event is to showcase the strength and the depth of Acomo and its companies. This event, therefore, serves as a perfect platform to show you how we are building roots to healthier foods. We have an exciting agenda planned for you. We will have keynote features by our business leaders who will provide you with their insights and expertise. We will have a Q&A session at the end where we really encourage you to ask questions and to actively participate to get the most out of this session. The networking drinks at the end of the event is where you meet your fellow attendees, exchange ideas and get to know the people behind Acomo and to see who they truly are. Before we proceed, there are a few housekeeping items. The safety exits are marked here at the bottom of the stairs. Please turn your phone on silent or airplane mode as to not to disrupt the presentations. After the event, it will be posted on our website where you can see the relevant topics discussed. Please also note that today's presentations include forward-looking statements. And as such, we caution you that these -- is not a guarantee of our financial performance and that our actual results may differ from those used in the presentation. All right. I want to thank you all again for being here. Your support and participation is what makes events like this a success. Without further ado, let's get this event started. It's an immense honor to welcome our first speaker of today, who will discuss the planned strategy and objective of the Acomo Group. Please welcome to the stage our very own Acomo CEO, Allard Goldschmeding.

Thank you, Jeanie. Welcome. Well, most of you know that we were planning to do a Capital Markets Day for some time now. But I could not imagine when we picked this date that this would be so much of a brilliant pick from a timing perspective. The turmoil in the markets are massive. That's also why a few people are not here because they had to look at their portfolios. But still, we believe we can actually turn this into an opportunity and to show you the resilience of our business. And I think the lecture of Wouter Jacobs earlier this afternoon already showed the relevance of a merchant and a trader in markets that are volatile and subject to change. So we believe actually it's a good opportunity. And I'm super excited that we can share our story with you this afternoon. And the story will be shared by 5 speakers. First of all, I will share with you our strategic objectives and where we want to go as an Acomo Group. Then we have 3 CEOs of 3 of our main operating entities, giving insights in their businesses. Albert Berisa will discuss with you the business model of Catz International, a big portion of our Spices and Nuts segment. Koert Liekelema will share with you how strong our platform in the U.S. is with our Edible Seeds business. And Floris Wesseling will take you into the world of Tradin Organic. And Mirjam van Thiel, our Group CFO, will share in more detail the way how we create value, but also the details of our financial objectives. At the end, I will wrap it up before we go into the Q&A. What we aim for today is to share with you the strength of our portfolio, to share with you our value-added capabilities, describe the role we play in the supply chain, tell you about our culture and the DNA that make Acomo. And obviously, we want to share our ambitions. We will tell you about what we do, how we do it, but also why we do it. That by the end of today, you have a better understanding of our business model, and hopefully, you are as enthusiastic about our company as we are. Acomo is leading in specialty ingredients. Our products are used by consumers throughout the day. In the morning, people use our tea and our coffee. For breakfast, dried fruits and the cocoa products can be used. During the day, people indulge themselves with bites of organic cocoa. Nuts are used for snacking in the afternoon. And in the evening, our food solutions are part of the dinners people have, including our spices and our seeds. And I deliberately say specialty ingredients because we are in non-listed commodities. And Wouter already described a bit what the differences are between listed and non-listed commodities and some of the questions were also related to the roles that parties play in the commodities industry that are only one have a financial play. We are in non-listed commodities. It's a different market. Prices are determined based on demand and supply. The 2 exceptions are cocoa or [ Coca-Cola ] , if you want to call it like that, and coffee. As most of you know, we had some experience in the last 2 years with that. The role we play in the supply chain is diverse. To get the products to the plate of the consumer, it needs to come from field to fork. And we have 5 distinct activities within the supply chain, the way how we've broken it down. First, we have farming. Then sourcing and trading, processing, inventory and distribution and customers and retail. All those steps are necessary to get the products, the ingredients to the plate of the consumer. We focus primarily to the middle part, the middle 3 components that are described here, sourcing and trading, processing, inventory and distribution. It doesn't mean that we're not involved in farming. We don't own estates, but yes, we help farmers to be more effective. And we are involved in retail and customers with branded businesses that we have to some extent. We are a leading business-to-business. We focus on business-to-business, active in over 100 companies across the globe with more than 600 different types of specialty ingredients. The company is built on a strong heritage. As a listed company, we date back to 1908, so over 100 years. And over time, the company has evolved into a specialty ingredients group through different types of acquisitions, leading to the scale we have today. We have EUR 1.4 billion in sales and EUR 109 million in EBITDA. Sustainability is an integral part of the way how we do business. We're not an opportunistic trader. We have been there for 100 years, and some of our companies actually are even older. Our Tea business is over 200 years old. Our Spices business is over 160, 170 years old. So we are not opportunistic. We want to sustain the way how we do business. Like I said, we have a diversified plant-based portfolio, which is broken up in 5 different reporting segments: Spices and Nuts; Edible Seeds; Organic Ingredients; Tea; and Food Solutions. And what you see is that you see the different names of the operating entities underneath. And our operating entities are rather free in the way how you do business. And that's part of our culture. That's part of the DNA of our company, always have been and always will be. What you can see in the bottom is in the pie charts are the shares of the sales. And you may think that if you look at Food Solutions, and that's obviously a question we get more often, it's rather small. If you look at from a profit perspective, it's double the size of what you can see in sales. So for us, it's an attractive business to be in. Not only our product portfolio is diverse, our customer base is diverse as well, ranging from blue-chip food manufacturers, big CPG companies and other food manufacturers to retailers, specialty stores as well as a number of food service clients being wholesalers. But also to give you an example, we sell SunButter for meal kits for schools in the U.S. So not only in the product portfolio we have, but also in the customer portfolio, we don't have a concentration. It's diverse, it's widespread and very well balanced, I would say. What I would like to share with you because I can show you a lot of slides to bring Acomo a little bit more to life, we have -- I would like to share with you now our latest version of our corporate video. [Presentation]

I hope this brought a little bit more life to, let's say, my stories and the slides. And I think it gives a good impression of who we are and what we do. What you've seen is our tag line, building roots to healthier foods. This tag line has actually multiple layers, especially the words roots and healthier. With roots, we have 3 different meanings. It means foundational, physical and intellectual. Foundational because we have a long heritage. We have a broad experience in supply chains. We have a strong DNA in our organization, and we have a long-standing relationship with both customers and suppliers. Physical one is the obvious one, and that was also what obviously was shared by Wouter before. We bridge. We bridge time, we bridge distance. We change the form of a product because our products are grown in areas where they are not consumed. So our customers are in a different part of the world. That is our role. And intellectually, because intellectually, you can you can have everything physically in place. If you don't know what you're doing, if you don't have the expertise, you don't add value, not only to yourself, but also not to your customer. We have an extensive supply network, which allows us to look where in the world products are available and where we can get the right specs for our customers. We have product and market knowledge. We know -- our back offices know what we do because you can trade or you can ship products. But if you don't know anything about certification, if you don't know anything about importing duties and all that type of stuff, you don't know what you're doing. And digital transformation is another one. One of the examples is that the world is changing quite rapidly, and you need to have the intellectual capabilities to deal with that. And for example, the EUDR regulations, which relate to deforestation, which are applicable for us for cocoa and coffee, require that you at source can already establish whether it's coming from a plot land that was not subject to deforestation. Tradin Organic developed an app that is used on the mobile phones by the farmers, which enables us to get products into Europe that are compliant with the EUDR regulations, which will be compliant -- which will become into force next year. But it's not only about roots. The word healthier has also different meanings. Obviously, our portfolio is very healthy. But not only that, the world we're in, the food trends that we see are healthy to us. They create an environment that enables us to further grow and develop. We see changes in diets that I will allude to in another slide. But also financially, our operating entities have a very healthy organization model and business model. And as a group, we have a healthy balance sheet with whom we can enable our operating entities to be as flexible and as effective as they can be. And we all act within a clear financial framework. Our vision is that these routes lead to being a leader partner in plant-based food ingredients in conventional and organic specialty markets. To get to this vision, we have created a tree, a value- creation tree, which consists of several components. Let me start with the trunk. The trunk of a tree is crucial to have the tree be able to grow. The bigger the trunk, the more resilient the tree is. And for us, the thicker the trunk is, it means scale. Because the more scale we have, the more products we can offer to our customers, the more financing capabilities we have, the more we can deal with global trade disruptions, but also increased regulations like we see in Europe. As Acomo is an asset-light company, our people are our key asset. Our people are our interface to our customers. Our people are the ones that make a decision whether to buy a product and at which spec and at which price and where. That's why attracting, developing and rewarding our people is crucial to us. Another component is the diverse product portfolio. I already shared with you the diversity of the 600 different types of ingredients we have. But we also can source them in multiple origins. So for a single product, we have more options to source our products depending on price and availability. Thirdly, responsible and resilient supply chains. Like I said, we're not opportunistic. We're here -- we are in this for the long run. And to be able to serve our customers longer term, you need to have options in your supply chain and you need to make sure that they are resilient in a structural way. That also means that it's not only the supply chains that needs to be resilient, but also the way how our products are grown. So we have sustainable agriculture programs and different types of certification programs in place that we will come back to later at this presentation. And then the value-adding capabilities. To our ingredients, we have different processing capabilities. We can blend, we can sort, we can clean, we can grind, we can roast. And that's the way how you physically add value to our products. But we also add value through in-depth market knowledge. We can explain to customers when they should cover themselves, where the market trend is going, and those are also reports that we publish and make available to our customers. And then, again, innovation and the -- or the digital innovation is a critical component going forward as well. But a tree is not a healthy tree without a good root system and a healthy root system. And that's where this company is based upon. And for us, there are 3 different components that are crucial. First of all, the entrepreneurial drive we have in our organization. And like I said before, our operating entities have a high degree of freedom how to operate. That fits very well with the entrepreneurial drive. Reliability. Reliability is not a given in our industry. But in case, for example, we would sell a product to you at a higher -- at a lower price than we have to pay to get the products, we will do so. We're honor a contract. For us, a contract is a contract. And that has resulted not only in the long history of the company, but also in the long-standing relationships we have with both suppliers as well as customers. And finally, act responsibly. Again, we want to sustain our business model, but we also have a code of conduct that are applicable in different areas on the supply side and both internally. But we also are involved in regenerative farming to make sure that in the long run, we still have the availability and access to the products that we actually need. This value creation tree obviously leads to our ambitions. And I'm excited to share with you, which is the first time in the history of Acomo, I'm aware of that, our ambitions where we want to grow. And you may already have read the press release earlier this morning, but here it is. We want to grow. We need scale. And it's not just because of the sake of scale, but because we believe that by having scale, we stay relevant in the industry. And scale means that we want to grow to a EUR 2 billion sales company in the midterm. We want to do that in a healthy way. So we are aiming for an EBITDA margin of 9%. We will do this within the framework that most of you are used to, which was -- has always been applicable to Acomo with a low leverage ratio. We want to have a healthy balance sheet. We want to stay below 2.5, okay? When we do a big acquisition, it can change. It can be higher. But as we have shown with the Tradin Organic acquisition, we want to be able to bring the leverage ratio in the foreseeable future back to the levels that I'm describing here. And last but not least, obviously, we like to remain an attractive dividend payer to our shareholders. Mirjam will go in more detail into these slides or these targets. Why do we believe that our targets are achievable? There are 3 different dynamics that I'd like to share with you. First of all, the food trends that we're seeing. And the food trends are a perfect fit with our product portfolio. Food availability is becoming increasingly important. That fits very well our capabilities. And the friendly-for-people-and-planet trends fits our beliefs. The food trends. I don't think I tell you a lot of new stuff, but we see a lot of diets that are changing to give a bigger portion of the health plate to plant-based proteins. For example, the planetary health plate, as you can see, gives a bigger portion to plant-based proteins and only a very small portion to animal proteins. What we also see is that retailers and food service have expanded their plant-based offerings at the expense of animal proteins. And also interestingly enough, there is a lot of research, and this is one of them, which is called coming from global data, which is a forward-looking anticipation, where it says is that leading companies will source organic, natural and allergen-free ingredients that are sourced sustainably. Well, that's to the core of our business, I would say. The way how we can deal with those footprints, how do we translate that in an operational way to us? First of all, our portfolio is a good fit. We have innovation capabilities. And Koert, for example, will share with you one of our latest introductions, which is Jammies in the U.S., which is very much an example of the way how we innovate our product portfolio. We help our customers to be more effective in the way how they deal with their clients, with the consumers to position their products and their concepts in an effective way. And we have convenient solutions that enable our customer to have efficient and convenient product solutions for the end consumer because people want to eat healthy, but they want to have very convenient solutions. Food availability -- and also here, you see a lot of items that were shared by Dr. Wouter Jacobs earlier this afternoon. A lot of elements you will see are coming back in our presentation that shows the relevance, let's say, of the environment we're in. First of all, the world will grow. The world population will grow. But we also know that the planet will not grow. So that means that the acreages we have are limited, but still, we need to make sure that we actually grow the ingredients that we need to feed all the people in the world. That means that access to source and access to ingredients is crucial and will become even more important. Secondly, another item is that there are so many disruptions and whether it is COVID, whether it's the tanker in the Suez Canal, whether it's the Red Sea, so many disruptions. And on top of that, we now have to have the tariffs. So a lot of changes in the world, which makes it even more important that you have access to products, access to ingredients at source, and that's what we do. So the way how we deal with all of this are the capabilities we have. We have in-depth market knowledge. We know where to source our products, where to get it, and we have a wide variety, and we have options. We're not limited to single origins. But besides that, we want to develop more acreages. We want to work more with farmers to increase yield and to grow the products that we need them to grow. Because one other example is -- and on one hand, you can say that's great, and I think it is, but one of the research shows that the packaged nuts and seeds market is projected to grow in the next years by 10% on an annual basis. That's on a global level. That's great because that means there is more demand for these products. The downside of this is that you have to make sure that you have access to these ingredients because more people will fight for the same type of products. And in the end, you need to add value to the ingredients. We don't only sell ingredients, but we add value to it through, for example, cleaning, sorting, packing, roasting, whatever. And one other thing, sorry, which is -- I was about to forget alternative products. We have alternatives. If a certain product is not available for our customers, we can offer a different solution. The third one is food systems. And like I said, we need to grow everything. We need to feed everything within the planet. So what we do need to be friendly for the planet, but also friendly for the people. For us, that means that food safety is our prime responsibility. That's at the core of what we do and where we do not compromise. But organic integrity becomes more and more important as well. And Floris will tell you more about the world of Tradin Organic, what it actually means and how we add value there and how important it is going forward. And finally, transparency and traceability is crucial because people want to know. Not only the customer, but also consumers want to know where is the product coming from. We provide that transparency because we manage the supply chain. Our objectives and the trends lead to our strategic choices. What we want to do, first of all, we want to grow our Spices and Nuts segment. We want to both do it, obviously, in an autonomous way, but we also want to grow through M&A, both in Europe as well as in North America. Edible Seeds, again, also want to grow in an autonomous way. But also there, we are looking at M&A, especially in North America. Organic Ingredients, we will very much focus on the core elements of the portfolio, but also there, we want to grow also through bolt-on M&A. Tea is, as you know, is at the lower end of our range. There, we want to focus more on the profitability of our business. So what we're going to do, we're going to introduce a new customer-centric model to be closer to the customers where we believe we can create the value and the right value for us and for our customers. And finally, Food Solutions. As you may know, we quite recently invested in additional processing capabilities in Belgium, which we will continue to do. And also there, we will look at bolt-on acquisitions in Europe. A brief link back to the presentation of the lecture of Wouter Jacobs. He talked about the function. He talked about the characteristics of the industry and the developments. One of the -- well, he had a few key items, but one of the key items was actually that trust and reliability is a necessity in our industry. And trust and reliability is exactly what aligns with our capabilities, but also the DNA and the culture of our group. I explained to you why we want to grow. We have a growth focus and we have a very clear financial framework within we want to grow. The market trends and dynamics are a perfect fit with our portfolio as well as our capabilities. And finally, the Acoma culture is deeply rooted in the organization and is a necessity and a fundament for further growth and development. We will now -- you will now get 3 different business presentations. The first one of Albert Berisa talking about the business model of Catz and the sustainability of that model. Koert will tell you about our Edible Seeds business in North America and what type of a platform that is for further growth. And again, Floris will take you to the world of Tradin organic, and we'll show you how we want to grow and what the growth opportunities are within our organic business. Then I'd like to hand it now back to Jeanie. Thank you.

Thank you, Allard. We now indeed have a better example of how Acomo is building roots to healthier foods and what this means for us. Our next speaker is the Managing Director of Catz International, Albert Berisa. Catz International forms part of our Spices and Nuts segment, and they are one of the oldest companies within the Acomo Group. They are known for their record performances and contributions as well. Albert will tell us more about Catz International, their mission and their unique market position. Everyone, please welcome Albert.

Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome. My name is Albert Berisa. I'm the Managing Director of Catz International and already 30 years with the company. I would like to take you on a journey into the world of international trade and show you how we at Catz International, play a crucial role in the efficient and sustainable distribution of agricultural products. Founded in 1856, Catz International is one of the oldest and most respected trading companies in Europe. We specialize in the import and export of spices, dried vegetables, edible nuts, dried fruits and coconut products. Our clients operate worldwide in the food industry, and they rely on us to deliver top-quality products. Catz has developed from a trading company to a full service provider to many industries and adding value in many aspects within the supply chain. Why customers choose Catz International since almost 170 years? Catz is considered to be a safe haven for many customers to continue their operations under challenging circumstances and times, helping them to avoid supply disruptions. Where do we play? As you have seen in Allard's presentation, the various entities of Acomo are active in various parts throughout the supply chain. Catz is mainly active in sourcing and trading and in inventory and distribution. To give you an idea about a day of the office at Catz, please watch this video. [Presentation]

Now I would like to explain a bit more to you about our business model. This can be divided into 5 elements. The first one is where we monitor global market developments. Catz is known for its market intelligence. We monitor trends, price fluctuations and demand shifts, and we adapt very fast to changing regulations, trade restrictions and economic trends. For example, when black pepper prices doubled about 2 years ago, we saved millions for our clients by advising them to cover their requirements at the appropriate time. And of course, we also benefited ourselves from the positions we took. We manage supply risks. We do that through a diversified supplier base to reduce dependency on one region. In case of a disappointing harvest, we are able to guarantee supplies from other origins or from buffer stocks. An example is the Nigerian ginger harvest. This year, there is actually no harvest because of a fungal attack. Since we were able to cover a big part of our Nigerian ginger needs last year, and we still have sufficient stock, we are able to cater the requirements of many clients in Europe. Ensuring quality and timely delivery. We do that through collaboration with certified producers and suppliers and through efficient logistics and inventory management. We source globally, which ensures competitive pricing through strategic procurement, and it enables us to offer a wider assortment, and it also enables us to meet the growing demand for sustainable products. Another advantage that we have within our model is that we are strategically located and headquartered in Rotterdam, near one of the world's largest ports. We are in close proximity to key European markets and regulatory bodies. It provides us also a faster distribution to European clients. This is how we create peace of mind for our partners. What is the unique position of Catz International? Where industries lack knowledge, expertise and access, Catz enables the supply of crucial ingredients at all times. Almost all products are specific and tailor-made, meeting specific quality standards of each individual company. We keep stocks to be able to guarantee supply against existing contracts as well as to new orders. We act as a trading platform and as a so-called one-stop shop. Our scale provides us competitive pricing and volume. These factors have made Catz, amongst others, the world's largest single buyer of designated coconut. This is why customers consider Catz a safe haven. I would like to give you an example where we have our competitive advantage, which is in one of our largest items, desiccated coconut. Because of adverse climatical conditions, the raw coconut supply in the most important origins, Philippines, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Vietnam was severely reduced last year. Catz anticipated on these developments and decided to cover itself for a large volume with strategic partners before prices started to increase aggressively. Strategic customers could benefit from supply security and price advantage. A leading blue-chip company, a confectionery industry saved millions of euros by covering themselves with Catz International. Our competitive advantage is also the human factor. We call it a people's business. Each day, our trading teams interact with international suppliers and customers, negotiate deals and ensure our products are efficiently distributed. One of the most exciting and challenging aspects of our work is negotiating with people from different cultures, keeping up with market developments and solving logistical challenges. A key difference from commodities traded on terminal markets is that we engage with real people instead of computers. While terminal markets rely on automated trading systems and algorithms, our approach is based on direct relationships with suppliers, farmers and buyers worldwide. This human connection allows us to build trust through our long-term partnerships, negotiate flexible terms instead of relying solely on market fluctuations, ensure quality control by working closely with producers, adapt quickly to changing supply and demand conditions. This personalized relationship-driven approach gives us a competitive advantage in ensuring quality, reliability and sustainability in the global trade of spices and food ingredients. Catz is in this business for 170 years. These skills are deeply rooted in the DNA of our people. The next generation is already in the organization and ready to bring it forward. A legitimate question would be, is Catz and its business model sustainable? Well, the answer is yes. Supply disruptions will not disappear. Actually, they will most probably increase. Prices will continue to change, food laws and regulations and sustainability standards will become more important and stricter in the future. Where in the past, our trade was mostly price driven, in the present, it's mostly about supply security and food safety. In the future, the key drivers are there of the past and the present, but they will be supplemented with sustainability and ethical sourcing. The key takeaways are almost 170 years in global trade, a crucial partner for food manufacturers. We have been there yesterday. We are there today, and we are there to stay tomorrow. A proven track record of strong and growing financial results. Catz is ready for the next 170 years. I hope I've given you a little bit more insight about Catz International, and I would like to thank you for your attention.

Thank you, Albert, and thank you for enlightening us on the position that Catz International has and provides to the Acomo Group. Knowing our next speaker, Koert Liekelema, the Managing Director of Red River Commodities in the United States, I am sure you will be inspired by his input. Red River Commodities forms part of our Edible Seeds segment and specializes in sunflower seeds. Koert will elaborate on the strong foundation and the opportunities for growth. I personally had the opportunity to visit Red River Commodities in Fargo where they are situated, and I could truly feel the passion that the people have for their product and company. Please welcome to the stage, Koert.

Thank you, Jean-Mari. Well, good afternoon, everyone. My name is Koert Liekelema, and this is my seventh year with the Acomo Group. I was first in Delinuts, a wholesaler in nuts and dried fruits, and we added trade skills and category marketing to that business model that was successful. Now I'm with Red River Commodities as the President and CEO in Fargo, North Dakota. So you can now call me Koert Liekalima or if I'm going to the Starbucks, it's simply Mike. Well, Red River Commodities is a company that is more than 50 years old and has its experience in the sourcing processing, manufacturing and marketing of sunflower products. We are the market leader in North America, and we have outgrown competition by investing in downstream businesses and vertical integration. Vertical integration, basically, meaning from farm to shelf, our activities look like providing the growers with perfect planting seeds that give us the right size and the right quality of product. We then collect these harvests from them, store it and process it in seed groups that are of the right size and the right quality. Subsequently, we roast, season, salt, grind or roast -- or I said roast -- or any of these other steps into a variety of different products. Ultimately, we package the product either for industrial use, food service or consumer goods. Now our home is in the upper Midwest, a region called the Dakotas. Those are 2 states with perfect conditions for sunflower growing. We have rich clay soil. We have sufficient moisture from large quantities of snow that arrive through the winter, and we have then warm and relatively short summers that make perfect growing conditions for the quickly growing crop called sunflower. With 350 employees and 50 years of staff and multiple production locations in the Midwest, we grow, harvest and reap the power of the sunflower. Acomo is a group of companies that add value in different parts of the supply chain. As you've seen with Catz, who have a lot of market knowledge and safety stocks, Red River Commodities is uniquely placed with a competitive edge at all steps from the farm to the shelf. So let's take a look at our business model and tell you a bit about the strength that we have. First of all, we are vertically integrated, and that's a competitive advantage. It means that we can allow and control -- it means that we can control the quality of the product. We can optimize the supply chain. We don't pay any middleman. We create value at offerings and benefit from high margins and stable earnings. Sunflowers are not only on the post cards that you receive from people that holiday in France. Actually, the U.S. is one of the largest growing sunflower areas, and it has led the development of seed types, sizes and other quality aspects. The U.S. is self-sufficient for confection sunflower. Red River Commodities has spearheaded all aspects of the sunflower business for the last 50 years. For decades and in cooperation with industry, we have developed expertise in seed types and agronomics, assisting the farmers to have the best return on their activity. We have long-standing partnerships and relationships with a loyal grower base in North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska and Kansas. Beyond domestic sourcing partnerships, we import globally, both in-shell and kernel. And our expertise in sourcing sunflowers positions us very well to replicate this in other edible seeds such as millet, milo, flax and a thing like corn. Now what are these profitable downstream businesses that I talk about? So beyond the processing of sunflower seeds, we developed a range of technologies for further processing and manufacturing. One example is in-shell seeds that we salt, roast and season into a grace-tasting sunflower snack that is a very popular product at baseball games and long car rides. Another example is kernel that we roast and grind into a sunflower paste, which is then marketed at SunButter. SunButter is an allergen-free alternative to peanut butter, and it has found its way into many homes and schools and give children and parents a better-for-you product over peanut butter. And for consumers that want to lend a hand to wild birds in their yards, we blend sunflower seeds and other seeds and grains into proprietary bird food mixes that are sold through hardware retailers across North America. So think the [ hummer ] and then you can buy these products. We have multiple packaging facilities and capabilities and a single modern warehouse for finished goods. This warehouse has railroad access. And in the U.S., that is an enormous competitive advantage. So it gives us a low freight factor in supplying our customers with the large volumes of products that we supply them with. The North American market is an attractive growth opportunity for Acomo. For example, the U.S. food industry exceeds USD 1.5 trillion. That's about 1/4 of the number that Wouter mentioned earlier when he talked about the global trade in commodities. The food ingredients market is $100 billion segment that continues to grow. And specialty ingredients are a particularly interesting category for us. You should think of plant-based proteins, allergen-free alternatives, and both of them are seeing double-digit growth. Consumers demand cleaner labels and they demand functional nutrition, and this is a big driver of the growth in that category. Sunflower-based ingredients are perfectly aligned with these trends. This rising preference for plant-based, non-GMO and allergen-free foods align perfectly with our offerings. The U.S. economy has a high amount of consumer spending. It has a growing population, and it has a strong labor market. Until recently, the U.S. economy grew faster than any other developed economy. And over the last period of 20 years, the U.S. has grown 33% richer than the Europeans, as an example. We see that in the purchase power of consumers for the products that we sell. There is a rising preference for plant-based non-GMO and allergen-free, as I said, and this gives us perfect opportunity to be present in that exact category. The U.S. has well-established supply chains across the country and internationally and a consumer base receptive to innovation. For us, that means that the U.S. is a prime market for further expansion. So how do we create value with the power of the sunflower? Consistent consumer trends in cleaner label, plant-based alternatives and allergen-free options have been around for more than a decade. This trend continues to grow, and it continues to grow in impact. The attributes of sunflower perfectly align. Sunflower is naturally non-GMO. It is a crop that needs very little water and grows in a very short time, resulting in a product that improves the soil, but also leaves the consumer with kernel and seeds that are high in protein, high in fiber and high in healthy fats. And strikingly, sunflowers are free from the top 9 food allergens. So it's a no-worry product. Red River Commodities has harvested the power of the sunflower and developed a leadership position in the North American market. Our local sourcing and local sales complemented with imports are at a scale that no other company has been able to achieve. In addition, our vertical integration means that we collect margin at every step of the supply chain. And this leads to an ultimate added value in excess of $5 per pound of sunflower, and that is 5x above the industry average. Our downstream success has also created long-term sustainable customer relations with retailers such as Walmart and Lowe's, but also FMCG companies such as Frit-o-Lays and ConAgra. And these long-term sustainable relations means that we are well placed to introduce new products, but we can also lock in their customer commitment for longer periods of time. Now let's take a closer look at these 4 businesses that we are active in. Sunflower was developed in-house 20 years ago through our own research and development efforts. And through those R&D efforts, we've created a product, a sunflower paste that is stable. So the liquid or the oils do not separate from the product. Also, the product is beautifully of color rather than a green oily glow that you would get if you would grind these sunflowers. Without consumer brand expertise, we started on a journey that has brought us today in a position where at more than 80% of the retailers in the natural channel, we are on the shelf. Similarly, in the conventional channel like the Walmart, the Targets and the Albertsons, Safeways, we are present in almost 70% of the stores. And all of these stores carry at least 2 of the SKUs that SunButter sells. Our volume growth in SunButter for the last 10 years has exceeded 10% every year. Sunflower snacks are a very popular product in North America, and Red River Commodities is the contract manufacturer for the 3 largest brands. These brands, Spitz, BIGS and DAVID are owned by Frito-Lays and ConAgra. And in a long-term partnership, we have developed the salting, seasoning and roasting production lines for sunflower seeds that give them the exact right product, which we then subsequently put in their packaging. It is in the -- we are the only contract manufacturer that can do all steps and that can do it at the scale that is required. Our contractual agreements are for many years and have resulted also in significant joint capital expenditure projects where our customers invest in automation of our facilities. Sunflower seeds and kernel make for great bird food products, and we make blends that are specifically geared towards certain bird types. So the American consumer can walk into a store and choose the type of bird food that matches the desire that he has for birds that are visiting. The product is an impulse buy for consumers, and that confronts us with big swings in customer demand. We have 2 manufacturing locations closely placed to raw materials and to consumer -- to customer distribution centers that are very flexible in meeting those demand changes. To create more value, Red River Commodities has recently developed a product range for backyard poultry. This is a hobby that is growing fast under families with young children and that benefit from the trend to supply your own eggs. We see fast growth in this segment and have big ambitions for it. And then finally, what is the largest part of the business for our competitor is actually the smallest for us. That is trade sales of in-shell and kernel. Our focus instead is on adding value downstream, yet we retain a certain amount of our in-shell and kernel to sell into the industrial segment. In addition, we have 2 specialty ingredients that add value to the customers' application. One is Suntein, a sunflower flour that adds protein to baking applications. And the second one is SunButter paste that is used as a flavor in cookies, snacks and other food products. Now I'm very proud of our SunButter, obviously. This is a branded consumer goods. It's the biggest brand of us. It's the biggest brand in the Acomo group of companies. And I want to give you a little peek of the commercials that we use to promote this to our consumers. [Presentation]

So SunButter is more than just a peanut butter alternative. It's a game changer for families, schools and food manufacturers looking for delicious, nutritious and completely allergen-free spread. It's made from roasted U.S.-grown sunflower seeds. SunButter delivers the same creamy satisfying experience as peanut butter. And it's with without the top line allergens. It's available in a versatile product range. We have jars for retail that are perfect of families looking for a worry-free and delicious spread, single-serve cups for food service, which are ideal for schools, cafeterias and on-the-go snacking and is bulk for manufacturing. From SunButter, we moved on to Jammies. Now let me introduce Jammies. It's a delicious twist on the classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich. And this is a staple item in the U.S. household. We've replaced peanut butter with SunButter, creating a complete -- completely nut-free, school-safe and family-friendly sandwich that anyone can enjoy. And our growth is hugely helped by schools that declare themselves allergen-free remove the PB&J sandwich for products like ours. Families love Jammies. They bring joy and exclusion. They are the ultimate convenience, and they're literally a taste of sunshine. At SunButter, we bring the sun into people's lives. That's what we'd like to say. To make sure that we can deliver on this proposition, all these products are made in a peanut and tree nut-free facility in Fargo, North Dakota. We continue to grow by further penetrating distribution in retail by accelerating rotation on the self through marketing and promotion and by expanding the portfolio with new flavors and new products. Then Wildlife. Wildlife is actually our largest business and very successful in formulating and packaging our own branded and private label bird food products for hardware retailers. To sum, we have been the sole supplier for many, many years, to others, we are the exclusive supplier for an elite range. Regardless, the market is very, very competitive and competitors fight aggressively for market share. Our profitability is determined by skillful procurement of the seeds and grains that go into the product and flawless execution of production and packaging. Our 2 manufacturing locations are ideally placed to make that happen. Now Red River Commodities makes great strides in a growing segment called backyard poultry. And ever since COVID, this has been a hobby that family members have been taken on, especially in places a little outside of town, where you can have backyard poultry at home. Now we have a great team that contain product experts backyard poultry hobbyists and marketers. And together, they drive the portfolio of product development and the brand development and the social media outings and our promotion campaigns, and our salespeople convincingly and lovingly sell the proposition as one that creates superior value in the aisle of the customer. Our ambition is to double revenue in this segment that currently has a size of $400 million. Now our key strength for further growth rely on our farm-to-shelf proposition. Our farm to shelf proposition in sunflower is very strong. The vertical integration creates a durable and sustainable supply chain that creates superior value, and we can further grow our downstream businesses. We can also find more efficiencies in operations and we can increase our presence by playing a leading role in the consolidation of the sunflower industry. No one knows sunflowers better than we do, and no one has developed more businesses from it. The allergen-free proposition, the highly nutritional profile and a low environmental impact of these plant-based products enable us to align with current consumer trends. Red River Commodities -- it's actually right. Red River commodities exceeds in building long-term customer relations with hardware and grocery retailers throughout the country and with leading FMCG companies. This protects our existing businesses it places us in the front row to launch new products, and we can lock in customer commitments. We are plant-based, we can innovate and we are experienced in brand development. Now these consumer trends of cleaner labels and plant-based alternatives and allergy-free propositions, they give us many opportunities in Edible Seeds. In SunButter, the trick of the game is to increase penetration at retail and then move up the rotation on the sell. The more product we sell per store per week, the better it is for us and the better it is for our customer. With Wildlife, we can grow our market share. We can grow our portfolio, and we can improve our earnings by moving more and more backyard poultry type of products in the mix. And the sunflower industry is an industry that is currently consolidating. Too many players not like us, have not developed the downstream businesses that we have, and they are kind of getting stuck with processing seeds and having to sell it as a commodity. And that consolidation is a trend that we try to play a role in, and that gives us opportunities for acquisition. We think that in Edible Seeds, there are more opportunities to do the same as we do with sunflower. So to replicate the model that we have, either through investment ourselves or through acquisition, is the fourth avenue of growth. So I'd like you to take away from this that this integrated sunflower business that we have is surrounded with options to scale. And the diversified and profitable portfolio that we have is very much geared to consumer trends, and that the large growing and attractive food ingredients market in the U.S. is for us the right place to be and to invest in. Thank you very much.

Thank you, Koert, for telling us about the power of the sunflower and exactly what it means for your company. As a mother of 2 small children eating good quality, healthy food and at the same time, taking care of the planet for future generations is very important for me and my family. And I think Acomo is at the core of this with Tradin Organic as a front runner. Therefore, I am pleased to announce our next speaker, the Managing Director of Tradin Organic, Floris Wesseling. He will shed some light on the organic business, the future of organic and how they contribute to the sustainable portion of Acomo. It's a pleasure to welcome Floris to the stage.

Thank you very much. So yes, my name is Floris Wesseling. I'm leading the Tradin Organic company since September last year. I have discovered Tradin Organic to be an awesome platform for both growth and impact. And I will explain to you a little bit more driven by a large group of very passionate and very committed people. What I would like to share with you today in this short presentation is 4 main dimensions. Firstly, a brief introduction of the company; secondly, the business model and how that can evolve; third, the growth potential that organic provides; and last but not least, how our model can make a positive contribution to the planet and is an anchor in the transformation that we believe is needed in the food system. First, as I mentioned, a few perspectives on who we actually are and what we actually do. So what you see here is that we are operating in 6 distinct and unique categories with a very broad portfolio of products. And we have established -- this company has been established more than 30 years ago and is serving more than 1,000 customers in a very long-term and trustworthy relationship. In our model, we have embedded more than 350 suppliers, but some of them are even more than just suppliers, but true partnerships. And we have also developed 20 very unique collaborations, which I'll elaborate a bit on shortly after. We also have 3 integrated processing facilities. We have a avocado processing plant in Ethiopia, a sunflower plant in Bulgaria and a cocoa bean processing facility in the Netherlands. Now we operate in the organic space. And what I've also discovered in my months in Tradin Organic is that, that is not as easy as it sounds. Organic is a highly regulated space. So it requires a lot of commitment and a lot of energy and a lot of resources, as you see here, to make sure that we are able to provide that organic integrity that is needed. Organic comes in different shapes and forms. As you see here, we have 19 different certifications and standards which we provide to our customers based on their needs. And we do this with more than 400 people throughout the world with a very diverse and international group of people. So if we look at the similar chart as we've seen in the other presentations, where do we operate in this chain from farm to fork? We have -- we do not actively farm ourselves, but we have very strong relationships, and we contribute to the farming societies that we work with. We do have primary processing activities in our business. A lot of our activities are, of course, around trading, and we do have secondary processing activities in our operations to serve our customers' needs. So this is our way to build rootes to healthier foods as we are aiming for with the broader Acomo Group. We are uniquely positioned in our space, and we believe that thanks to our broad portfolio and our strong vertical integration, we are the only and the leading company in our space to provide this one-stop shop service to our customers. Of course, there are other players in this space. Some of them are more general traders and they have a broader portfolio and some are very specialized and more integrated specialists. But we are the only one with such a large international skill of providing this portfolio with the services around it that we can provide. Now you might ask yourself the question, organic, why would you want to do so much effort to be in organic? Well, that's because of various reasons. Jean-Mari already mentioned about her concern for her young children. And of course, there are many people, and more and more people in the world that are concerned about where their food comes from and how their food is actually produced. And we have a unique opportunity to not only provide healthy and nutritious food, but also clean ingredients, free of pesticides and that can also suit the needs of consumers that are more actively conscious of what they eat and how those products are actually produced. We also have a positive impact on our farmer communities through livelihood programs ensuring fair pricing and fair income for our farmers, but of course, also to ensure that in the way they perform their farming practices is also in line with ethical standards that we all believe is the right thing to do. And last but not least, and that's also one of the key reasons why I'm very passionate about this business is the impact on the planet. If you know a little bit about biodiversity, the importance of soil health for our future, I'm sure you'll also be convinced that this is going to be crucial in the next decade to ensure that we will continue to have the diversity and the healthiness of the food that we have been used to over the last few centuries. Beyond that, organic farming is significantly lower in carbon footprint, so that can also help our customers on their sustainability commitments and their journeys. And Tradin Organic is uniquely positioned, as I mentioned before, with our broad portfolio, a very strong trusted relationship, our high level of traceability and quality assurance, but of course, also because of the diversity of our supply base, we are able also during supply disruptions to provide our customers with the products they need. On top of that, we can capitalize on the sustainability programs that we run and provide a connection with them to our customers and the brands today. So the combination of these 2 provide a great platform for our future. Now I wanted to give you a slight illustration of how -- where we operate in the world and to give you a bit of a flavor of where our products are actually sourced. This is not intended to be exhaustive, but it's just an illustration of some of our key countries because some of those countries are not so well known actually. And it's also interesting to see that the countries where we have put the yellow star are the countries where we do these very special support projects for our organic growers and processes. For example, in Indonesia, we have a very unique project together with our coconut sugar communities on Java, where we help them with technical assistance, we help them with different type of equipment to reduce the carbon footprint of the activity that they performed there and also to help in terms of sustainable income for the women that are active in that farming community. Another important country for us is Sierra Leone, where I've recently visited our operations. And in order to give you a bit of a flavor of what it looks like what we operate there, I'll share with you a short video. [Presentation]

So as I mentioned, I was there a few months ago, and it was really impressive to see that a very long-term project that we have been established there now for nearly a decade, starting to really flourish because what we are doing there besides, let's say, the strong collaboration with the various codes is to build cocoa trees for the future. And they are built in a way that the whole biosystem complements each other. So I've been having the privilege to visit that with our local team and was very encouraging to see because this is, for us, our key country when it comes to our cocoa system and sourcing, and we are preparing the future for that in the coming years. Now moving on, looking more into the future of organic. So over the last decade, we have seen that organic outpaced the growth of the overall food market. As you can see here, between 2012 and 2022. Now the recent years have been a bit more challenging because of the price increases and the high level of inflation that food has been exposed to in the recent years. However, in 2024, we've already seen very encouraging numbers that it's reaccelerating versus the years before. And if we combine a various set of sources together in terms of projection for the future, we see that there is a high double-digit growth rate expected for the organic space, between now and 2030. And why is that? Well, because organic plays on different trends. It's not only about health, it's also about free from food, which continues to be a growing trend. It's capitalized it is, of course, in our portfolio also on the natural and plant-based diets. But also it's important for our customers that are in this space because they know that organic and organic farming provides more resilient supply chains than some of the more conventional farming. And of course, the growing group of conscious and ethical consumers around the world also by into the benefits of organic. So our platform is ready for future growth, we still have plenty of opportunities to grow within the existing model, while we're expanding our model for the future. So on the one hand, we have a deep knowledge of consumers and deep knowledge of our customers. And at the same time, we are very deeply connected to our suppliers and our farmers. So to be able to combine that, we are able to deliver an end-to-end value proposition for both our customers and our producers. We do this through the broad reach and the global network of experts and supply partnerships that we have by continuously evolving and expanding the value-added activities that we perform in the chain. What we also do is unlock vital resources, both financially and in terms of technical capabilities, in our supply partnerships. So we have a specific financial vehicle that provides both technical assistance programs and financial support for the farmers and to be able to finance their future crops. And last but not least, we also have this origin diversification that reduces the risks in some of our critical commodities and items and provides that sustainable sourcing model. And the great thing about the model we have is that with this impact growth cycle, as our business scales, so does our positive impact. So we are one of the few companies in the world that can say that the more we grow, the more positive impact we have on the planet. We grow our business. And in order to grow our business, we have to scale the organic regenerative agriculture acreage. That boosts biodiversity and soil health and, at the same time, improve the livelihoods of our farmers, as I mentioned. This provides us with access to the more resilient supply chains, and we keep on rotating this cycle and keep on having a growth model with a major positive impact. So to finish, a few key messages. We have a business model that is very resilient and is primed to lead in a complex world. We have a business that is in the growth space, and we are well positioned to capture that growth. We will continue to advance on our fundamentals. We have solid fundamentals, but we have lots of opportunities to strengthen them and grow them even further. And we do that with a team of people that is highly dedicated to our calls, our entrepreneurial mindset and is able to look into the future and see how we continue to grow our impact cycle. I hope that was giving you a good first glance of the operations that we have in Tradin Organic. Thank you for your attention, and have a nice day.

Thank you, Floris, expanding our knowledge in the organic ingredient world and for showing us how Tradin Organic is truly a one-stop shop with integrated supply network. Our next speaker is Acomo's very own CFO, Mirjam van Thiel. Mirjam joined Acomo last year, and already, we can feel her presence and the impact that she is making. She will share Acomo's value creation and financial objectives. Please welcome to the stage, Mirjam van Thiel.

Thank you, [ Jeannie ], and a warm welcome to you all. It's a pleasure to hear today with you. Let me first take a step back and take a look at the value creation tree that Allard explained earlier. We hope by now listening to the presentations you have a better idea how The Street comes to life in the daily activities of our operating companies. You heard Albert talking about human capital and how important his team is for him. You heard from Koert, how we are adding value to the sunflower seeds in the U.S. and the variety of products we are making from them. You heard how embedded responsible supply chain is in the DNA of Tradin Organic and how they are working together with farmers in countries like Indonesia and Vietnam on this. Now from here, let me take you through the financial objectives. Our skill is in the trunk of the tree, it is also one of our key financial targets that we're having. And that is so because we so strongly believe that in the changing environment we are in, with climate changes, trade disruptions, changes in regulations, having skill will really enable us to continue to give the best service to our customers, be it on price, be it on reliability, be it quality. And we have an ambition to grow. We want to grow at almost 50% to become a EUR 2 billion company. We will do that with both organic growth as well as with acquisition, and I will tell you more about that in a minute. Now we have been doing, and we will continue to do that in a very responsible way, which for us and our business means we want to keep our leverage ratio on average on a normalized basis below the 2.5. And why is this so important? Because it gives us room to act and react on market circumstances or market volatility, and it gives us the means to fund our growth plans. Now we will do that with a healthy EBITDA margin. Historically, we have been around 7% to 8%, which actually is already a few points higher than the more traditional trading houses. We want to bring that up to 9% and we will do that by focusing on value-adding activities by focusing on efficiencies and by growing our most profitable parts of the business. And we have been -- and we want to remain an attractive dividend payer to our shareholders. Now let me take a moment to go in some more depth in each of these 4 objectives. So first, in the last 5 years, we've doubled our sales and we doubled our EBITDA which is a combination of, of course, helped by acquisitions, but also organically, we have been growing and we grew our sales with 5% average year-on-year and our EBITDA to 13%. And looking forward, we have this ambition to continue with this growth plan. So we want to grow at almost 50% to become this EUR 2 billion company. We will do that with acquisitions and with organic growth. And with organic growth just for the avoidance of doubt, I'm not talking only specifically about Tradin Organic, we will for sure contribute to that, but it is, of course, the organic growth of all our existing businesses. Now to go to a little bit more depth there. We see great opportunities to further grow with our existing portfolio in our existing markets. And we have a portfolio that's on trend, what Allard explained, you heard Koert talking about SunButter, Wildlife and the opportunities we have to grow there. And you heard from Floris, the growth that we are seeing in the organic segment and how well Tradin is positioned to really leverage on that. Also, we continue to look at geographic expansion. And that is, for example, where you have to think about our Nuts businesses in the Netherlands, selling already more and more to other countries in Europe as well, and we will continue to do that. Portfolio extensions, we also remain open for that, although we will always do that carefully because we strongly believe that in our business, having the right market knowledge is key. Now then looking at acquisitions. At the last big acquisition we did was Tradin Organic. And last year, we had a very nice bolt-on acquisition with Delinuts Nordics. And for us, when we do acquisitions, 2 things are really important. One, we want to acquire the right company and two, we want to really make sure that it's well integrated and well performing. Now as of now, we are ready to take on another acquisition which then, of course, gets us to the question, what is the right acquisition for us? What is the right company for us? Now on this slide, you see what our priority areas are. That doesn't mean that we will not do anything else, but these are the priority areas. In the end, as you all know, it also depends on what is available at what moment and at what price. Important for us is that it's a non-listed specialty commodity and that it more or less fulfills the same role in the value chain as our existing companies. Now then how are we looking at the opportunities? So how are we evaluating these opportunities? It is really about having the right strategic fit, but also financial fit and also very important cultural fit. And when we do an acquisition, we basically have 2 options. We either do a bolt-on and we integrate that business in one of our existing companies. So had the acquisition in the Nordics that we just did last year is a great example of that, or we acquire it and we let the company we operated relatively independently. And in that case, where the benefit really comes in is mainly in financing. And you heard also earlier from Wouter Jacobs, financing, credit lines, et cetera, that will remain very important in our business. And as a group, we are more efficient there than that these companies can do on a stand-alone basis. But also specific topics like cyber security, sustainability, et cetera, is really what how we bring as a group to these companies. Now within the financial framework of Acomo, with that, I mean, we want to build scale, but we want to do that in a profitable way while we are maintaining a strong balance sheet. So we will not pay very high multiples for very high-margin business, but we will also not acquire very low single EBITDA margin businesses. It really is about finding that right balance between scale, profitability to be able to maintain the strong balance sheet. Now then with that, so it's really scale and margin. So with that, let me then move over to EBITDA margin. On this slide, you see how Acomo is positioned versus some of these other companies. And you see how well we are positioned and you see the added value that we're bringing back in the margin structure, really a few points higher than the more traditional trading houses. And then zooming into the margin of Acomo, you look a year at our various segments. And we have within our portfolio, some real stars. Food Solutions is having very attractive margins. It's still relatively small now, but we are investing there to really be able to capture the growth. And really the work that they're doing on customized solutions. That is what you see back in the margin. And so we just opened up a new wet blend facility in Belgium. And with that, we really will drive aggressive growth in this segment. Also, Spices and Nuts delivering very healthy margins. Then looking at the organic ingredients. Of course, 2023 and to a lesser extent, '24 were impacted by the market dynamics happening in the cocoa market. So on here, I'm showing the average '21, '22 margin, which are the more normalized margins for this business. Now within our portfolio, having the lowest profitability with, as Allard already mentioned, we will work on a business model there and with that, we'll be ready to grow this business further as well. Now then before I move over from this, the P&L items, let's say, to the balance sheet, let me first take a moment to show you something about our capital allocation framework. So our first priority is really, we want to maintain a strong balance sheet, and we really want to have that because we need to have the room to move incase the market -- the market circumstances required that or if we want to move quickly on this right acquisition opportunity. Second and third is really about investing in growth. The first one is we are an asset-light company, but we do have some assets. We do have some factory, we have some warehouses and we really need to make sure we keep that up to standard. And then the second one is really we want to be able to invest in growth in acquisitions. And then fourth, we have been and we want to remain an attractive dividend payer. Now with that then, let me move over to maintaining a strong balance sheet. So you see our solvency ratio and our leverage ratio, are very solid. We ended the year 2024 with a solvency ratio of 51% and our leverage ratio of 2.3. And you see there at the beginning in 2020, it was higher, and that was just at the time when we did the acquisition, but then fairly quickly, it moved back to those below 2.5 levels where we really want it to be. And here, you see the financial headroom we have, and we have sufficient financial headroom. So the orange part of this graph is the funds that we've utilized and the green part is still the available funds we are available under our existing credit facilities. And at the end of 2024, we utilize more or less 30% of our committed funds. And then, of course, throughout the year, that goes up and down depending on the market circumstances. In the end, it, of course, depends heavily in our business on working capital, which we are always looking carefully at. But at the same time, we also really see that as an instrument in our commercial policy. Also important, how we are supported by a consortium of banks, quite some are actually year-to-date with us. And together, we extended our credit facility at the end of last year. So our current debt is maturing at the end of 2027. Now then the fourth, but not the least, pillar, we want to remain an attractive dividend payer. So you see our dividend payout over the last 10 years. You see a bit of a dip when we did the acquisition and if we do a sizable acquisition, again, we may well do that again. But after that, you see it restoring quickly back to high levels with an average higher than 70% and actually quite some years above the 80%. Now then to bring it all together, add the 4 KPIs I talked about, so that is sales, EBITDA margin, leverage ratio and dividend policy. You see here the performance of the past 10 years. And if you break the time line, let's say, in 2 parts, you see the first 5 years, very solid performance, solid dividend payouts. In the last 5 years, you see how we doubled the business, EBITDA margin has been between the 7.5%, 8%. But as a result, really, our earnings per share in the last 5 years were 30% higher than in the first 5 years. You see the leverage ratio up, but then also quickly restoring and a dividend down but also quickly back to that average 70% plus level. And then taking this forward, how we will grow our business to EUR 2 billion and 50% increase. We want to increase our EBITDA margin to 9%. We will maintain a strong balance sheet and remain an attractive dividend payer. Now then my last slide to conclude. So we have a strong base. We see great growth opportunities both organically as well as with acquisition. We have the financial headroom to act and react on market circumstances and fund this acquisition plan. So with that, we really believe we will be able to deliver long-term shareholder value. Thank you.

Thank you, Mirjam, for explaining how Acomo will create value by reaching its financial objectives. As the presentations are coming to an end today, we have covered a lot, and I'm sure you all have a lot of burning questions. But before we start with the Q&A session, Allard, our CEO, is going to come back to the stage and give a summary of all the takeaways.

Well, I hope you enjoyed our first Capital Markets Day. With all the presentations given different perspectives of our business, and hopefully, a more broad and in-depth understanding of our business model, and I think it was great for you to meet the people that are behind all the numbers. I won't tell a long story about the recap because I think we need to go to the Q&A rather fast. But there are a few things that I'd like to recap. First of all, we shared our growth objectives. And that we feel and not only feel we're convinced that our business model and our objectives are very much aligned with the trends we see in the market. and that we actually have the capabilities to build upon these trends and to create a healthy future for our company. You've heard 3 stories about our operating entities. And I think they're very well positioned for further growth. I think all 3 of them explained their business model, how sustainable it is, but also how scalable it is and the markets we're in are actually growth markets for also for all 3 of them. And Mirjam explained our financial targets and the financial framework that we are very prudent in the way how we manage our business, like we always have done, and that's what we want to do in the future as well. And we will grow both autonomously, but also through M&A. Frankly, you may have seen this nice sunflowers. Actually, I like them a lot and they make me happy. And obviously, it's part of our business model that Koert said. But there are quite a few characteristics of the sunflower seeds that resemble the characteristics of Acomo. First of all, sunflowers, especially the ones that we use in our product have a very fixed stem. That means that if there is a wind that actually the sunflower survives because it's very strong. Acomo can survive the winds and whether it's tariffs or product availability of others, we can survive, and we will build upon that. The other thing is that sunflowers have a very deep-rooted system. They're very efficient with nutritions they get out of the soil. We are very efficient with the resources that we have within our company. But maybe even more importantly, the roots of sunflower increase the composition of the soil. Acomo improves the composition of the supply chains we're in. And finally, sunflower had faces the sun. Well, Acomo faces the sun, faces the opportunities where we want to grow, and that's where we get our energy from. There's one characteristic that actually does not resemble Acomo because the sunflower is an annual crop. After a year, it disappears. Acomo has been around for over 100 years, and we plan to be around for another 100 years. Thank you.

And I'd like to invite to the stage -- sorry. Okay.

Okay. While they get comfortable on their seats, I'm going to give some guidance on how we are going to approach the Q&A session of today. We have our colleagues walking around with microphones. And if you have a question, and they all close, raise your hand and stand up and you can ask your question. Please remember to state your name and your company so that we know who you are. We will also be taking questions from the live stream. We then have our Acomo CEO and CFO here ready to get the answers. Okay. I think everyone is ready. We can start with the first question of the day.

My name is Patrick Roquas from Kepler Cheuvreux. I've got several questions, if I may. But the first one is, you discussed a positive market trends for many of the divisions that were presented. Many of these trends are not really new. And we have seen those in the past as well. And also, some of these trends might be first given, let's say, the current geopolitical climate. So the question is, why is this going to be new and accelerate the growth that we've seen over the past years? And second, on a divisional level, do your targets mean that the Spices and Nuts division is going to, let's say, expand its margin further to record levels as well as that Tradin Organics need to recover to, let's say, the initial targets that you've given at the time of the acquisition and also that Edible Seeds recovers from, let's say, what we've seen in the past? And then also finally -- Sorry, Allard, I see you, right -- does it mean that you expect that Tradin Organic and Edibles Seeds will be less volatile going forward?

Okay. I will do the first, the trends. And Mirjam I will do the margins. The trends are not new, No, but I think they are getting more explicit. Changes in the diets of people. Those programs get more -- are increasingly important to people. So I think the trends have been there, but they will be stronger than they used to be. The other thing is that -- and I think that's what Floris alluded to is that during the high food price inflation years that we had quite recently, I mean, the discretionary income of people is not that massive, I would say. So people have to make their choices. Even if they are conscious and want to have a more healthy diet, in times of high food price inflation that sometimes gets a little bit more on the back burner of less of a prior priority. But what we do see and consumer insights do reveal is that there is a constantly increasing interest in more healthy foods, more plant-based diets. And that's a trend that has been there. It will be stronger, and it will continue to be there. So I highly belief in it.

Okay. Then on the margins, if you envision the slide again with the different segments that you saw, right? I think it is important that, first of all, you really saw all the way on the -- is it the right margin for Food Solutions. It's still relatively small, but that is where we will -- we do believe we can proportionally grow faster there. So it is really about the mix in our portfolio. And it's not only about Food Solutions, but just in general, we have in our different segments as well, areas where we are making more profitable in areas where we are making less margins. So it is really focusing on that right mix, so growing faster in the more profitable areas. It will per se that everything everywhere will go up with this 1%. Then also specifically to Edible Seeds, in 2024, we did have some one-off impacts in there. So we do believe that we will be able to get that back to more normalized levels and the same for Tradin Organic, where we were still impacted by cocoa. And also there, we do believe looking also back at '21, '22, those are more the margins that we should really see going forward. So with that, those are some of the key drivers why we believe that more or less margin is a realistic margin for us to really target ourselves in the coming years to reach that.

Volatility to be less?

Volatility to be less. Look, I think in general, we are working in a market and there are market changes and challenges happening. So it's hard to say that it will not be there. I do think in the last years, how we did have the impact that Tradin Organic was big on the cocoa we have been able to manage that much better in 2024, and we expect that, that will continue. So let's say, that caused quite some fluctuation in our results in the past, which we have under control now and the market is -- we are closer to our suppliers, et cetera. There's less impact there. So I would say, yes, at the same time, yes, I also want to put a caveat there that it really depends on market dynamics, right? I think important is, which I think we alluded to quite a bit today. We are a very diversified business with a diversified portfolio, diversified supplier base. So with that, we can temper quite a lot of the fluctuations in the market, but don't hold me to it if something big happens.

Reg Watson from ING. I hope you've got your pen handy there. And I've got several questions. The first one relates to guidance. I think traditionally Acomo has issued giving any guns at all and here you are with the confidence to stand up on stage and give us 5% organic CAGR -- sorry, like-for-like, I should say, so we don't confuse anyone -- like-for-like CAGR? And then by some quick mental arithmetic, I think that means you need to find rough EUR 230 million of revenue from acquisitions as well. over the next 5 years. So that's quite sizable. So I'd appreciate your confidence on that figure, too. So both the organic and the like-for-like and the acquisition. Then the second sort of area of question on inside, I'd like to understand is that you are maintaining your commitment to a high dividend payout ratio, and that's very much part of Acomo tradition and history. But it's also not -- it's slightly at odds, I should say, with the desire to grow both organic like-for-like and through acquisition and just simply due to maintain solvency ratios and leverage ratios within the bounds of sort of comfortability. So I'd like to understand how you feel about sources of funding for any acquisitions. I think you mentioned you might cut the dividend, but whether or not rights issues might be required as they were for Tradin. And then linked to that final question, would you consider any disposals because I think coming into this Capital Markets Day, there had been some speculation that you might seek to dispose of some assets that perhaps aren't performing as well as you might like.

Yes, we never gave guidance. You're completely right, Reg. But we are now in a stage that we believe we are in a good position to give more guidance towards the midterm. It's different compared to where we will be at the end of this year. I mean, it is a slight difference. If you look at our funding and Mirjam showed that our capabilities to fund autonomous growth we have available. We have a lot of headroom in our financing. So am I comfortable? Or are we comfortable that we can fund the organic growth of our business? Yes. Do we believe that we can grow in those percentages? Yes. We have done that in the past, and that also was one of the slides of Mirjam. So that's the percentage that we've done before. For big acquisition, you're completely right. We cannot -- we need to have, and that was as part of the slots, we need to make bigger acquisitions or multiple smaller ones. The reason why we want to be stay at high dividend payout ratios is that we want to be prudent in the way how we allocate money. We don't want to create a war chest to be used for acquisitions. If we would want to do a major acquisition like we did with Tradin, we will go back to our shareholders, and we ask them if they want to fund that acquisition. And if it's a good story, they will do so. And if it's not -- if they don't believe in it, then maybe it's not such a good story. Are there targets of that size available in the market? Yes. Are we able to conclude on that in the next -- in the midterm? That's what we aim for. I mean guarantees, no, but I mean, there are targets, yes.

Okay. And then finally on disposals.

That's not -- I think we shared our ambitions, and I don't think I shared anything on disposals.

No, it has -- it has been a question that...

I know it's a questioning, but it's not a topic now. I mean it's -- and what I said on Tea because, obviously, that is one of the areas where people ask these questions, which I understand. But we do believe that by changing our business model to a more customer-centric model rather than focusing on purely on the origins. We will be able to create a different business model than we have today in an improved business model. And actually, as of last week, we have a new Managing Director for our Tea business, and he will work on this plan.

We also have a question from the live stream audience. The question is, what is your view on absolute dividend to be paid out in, say, 2030?

Yes, I need to answer that question, right? I have it in my model, but this is really -- you can basically model it more or less. But it is really -- if we build the skills or if we grow at 50% to be a EUR 2 billion company and we deliver these EBITDA margins and then having the payout of 70%. Now honestly, I don't have it on top of my head, but the dividend payout will be nice. I think the shareholders will be happy.

Okay. Any other questions from here?

[ Xavier Randon ] from [ Home Ports ]. I want to come back on the organic growth ambition of 5%. If I heard your managers, they all talked about double digits. Also the external studies talked about 10% Nuts and Seeds, some better, more than 10% organic ingredients, 13%. Can you comment a bit on the ambition of 5% because I understand in the past, it was 4%, but shouldn't it be higher than that?

Our ambitions can always be higher, obviously, internally, but we also know that you can't be successful in every initiative that you take to start with. On the other -- in addition, the numbers that we shared are global numbers. We're not active in every market. So first, it's very important to see -- to zoom in on those markets where we're active on those product groups that we're active in, and capture the growth there. And that's not per se the 10% or the 50%. And those are market studies. And yes, that's a prediction. But we are a little bit more prudent, I would say, in our planning for debt.

Joshua [indiscernible] Fund. I have 2, if you will. First of all, Mirjam noted that you will not pay very high multiples for high-margin businesses. So I'm interested in what multiples are you willing to pay? And secondly, in terms of the characteristics of your acquisition targets, can we expect levels of capital intensity similar to the Acomo family average. Are you willing to acquire businesses with a higher level of capital intensity?

Sorry, your second question. Sorry, I'm not...

In terms of the capital intensity of acquisition targets, what level should we expect something comparable to the average of the Acomo family more to the higher side? What are you looking at?

Yes. Okay. The first one Look, to give a multiple here, that I cannot do that, right? You understand it as well. It depends on so many factors. I think my key message there was really that, of course, we all know that for a very high-margin business, the multiple is higher. But we are not in the business of acquiring those type of companies, right? So that is a little bit my message. So it really is about finding that right mix of...

Do you need to pay more than what's Acomo is trading at?

It really depends on the company. So it's very hard to say. I think we more or less will stay around the same range, right? So we will not kind of go out -- completely out of, let's say, plus or minus x of what Acomo is today. Yes, I think that is a little bit more of this. Yes, what I can say about that. It is a point that the business that we acquired that fits our portfolio well. And that is where we will not acquire businesses with very, very low 1%, 2%, 3% margins like these more traditional trading houses. And we really believe in companies that are more in the specialty segments that are adding value as well to it, so where margin profile is more or less in line with our margin today may be slightly higher, and the multiples will be based on that as well. And the capital intensity, I'm not sure if I really get your question, but I think -- so we are an asset-light company, and we like that. At the same time, we also believe in adding value, right? So also that comes often together with some assets as well. So I think we will remain a relatively asset-light company, but could we acquire companies with assets? Yes, we can, yes.

Now, there were some questions above that have been kind of waiting for some time.

It's Amit Sharma from [indiscernible] Bank. I think the profess -- earlier said we're in a volatile, uncertain, account to the CNA, VUCA times. With the tariffs, what worries you the most, if we go into a world of higher tariffs?

Tariffs always have been there and changes in tariffs have been there as well. It is a fact that a little bit over 1/3 of our business we do in the U.S., we sell in the U.S. And out of this 1/3, were approximately 40% to 50% sourced within the U.S., which means that the other half we don't source in the U.S., right. It's very difficult to predict what it will do. On the other hand, we are a trader, and we have a broad network of sourcing. So we will look for opportunities to optimize the environment we're in because certain products come from the different origins. And one origin may be more subject to tariffs than others. So that's what we will focus upon. Again, having said that, it is -- has always been part of our life, or day-to-day business, maybe not always in the U.S. but in other parts of the world. Having said that, the magnitude of the current announcements is slightly different to compared to what we are all used to. Our commercial contracts include changes for these type of things. So in we can charge them on to our customers. But that doesn't tell you a lot about what it will do with demand for our products. But yet, we are in food products. Our competitors are having the same challenges. And again, we have scale. We have the capabilities. We have the knowledge, to deal with these challenges in the most effective way like we've done in the past, and that's what we will do in the future.

Okay. Looking at the time, I think we should do the last question now. Let's give this side a chance.

My name is [ Stefan ] from HECO. I have a question on the return on investments. Last decade, they get under pressure I don't see them as a target now, but what are your ambitions? Can you tell a little bit more what are your ambitions on the return on investments? And maybe could you also give some flavor on the organic growth? Maybe what part can be volume and what part can be priced?

Good return on investment. It is -- and actually, it's also still in our annual report. It is a target as well. It's not like a hard target, but we do have an ambition. We want to go to like the 15% return on invested capital. That's a bit, let's say, what we have been saying in the last few years, and that is continue to be the direction we want to go to. The organic growth so it's 5% on average. We are not disclosed, let's say, growth targets for each of the segments. I think we have certain segments where there is more opportunity and certain segments may be less. But we hope that we have given you enough kind of feeling on why we believe we are on trend and how we can really capitalize on that and growing the various parts of our business.

Well, it's both volume and price, but volume is important, right? Because what we do see is that the demand for our products is increasing, markets are increasing, and that's not just price. And obviously, the market prices that we are that we're seeing can change a lot during the day or between the years. We've seen the cocoa prices, last, last week, they increased by 15% in a 2-day period. And yesterday, declined by another 8% again. And I think today before we went into this meeting, it declines as well. So sometimes and that's also one thing good to remember that we talked lot about tariffs, 20%, right? Which is important. But if we look at the price increases that we've seen in cocoa, I mean, within 2 days, the 20% tariff over the U.S. can be completely offset. So it's a little bit of a balance, right, to put things in perspective, not that it's nice, but yes, that's also -- be realistic on the input.

But I think the 5% organic target, that is mainly about building scale. So if there's a massive change in pricing, yes, that will have a potential further impact, but it's really about the volume we want to build, yes.

Shall we do one more?

So I've got a question on the Spice and Nuts division, which I think has been really instrumental to the success of Acomo. So I had a close look in my spreadsheet and it generated close to EUR 60 million in EBITDA last year coming from, I think, EUR 8 million 2005. So these guys should be doing something really well. I think giving the comfort to expand organically, but also to do M&A. And on M&A, which you would be open to kind of look for candidates that perhaps are less performing well, need some restructuring, benefiting from, let's say, the quality and experience that the team of Mr. Berisa has.

It's a very fair question. And the answer is not per se no. but maybe also not very likely. Because the reason for that is we are -- and that's what Albert said, is the people of our business are crucial. And we always look how can we scale the capabilities that we have at Catz to -- well, to a bigger business and to other product groups, but the -- and I think also rather crucial in the specialty ingredients that we're in, we're not in listed commodities. So we don't trade based on screens, but we trade based on in-depth market knowledge. And the good thing is that the barrier to entry in this industry is rather high because you need to know what you do. You cannot get a brilliant analytical guy from the street, putting behind screens and do the trades or have a great algorithm or whatever. You need to have in-depth knowledge. And that means that you need to train and educate people and what we see at Catz is that people have been with Catz for a long period of time and over time, they grow into the role they currently have. And that's why we think crucial that we attract young, new, good and brilliant people, the Ronaldo and Messi of tomorrow as we tend to go in. And that we educate and train them, so they actually can become that good. To take a company that is underperforming and have the same character success cuts, it's tricky to add that to a well-performing company. I rather would add individual desks or whatever or a geographical expansion with good people and buying a bad asset out of the market.

If I look at the time, we are well over the time. So I think well, as this event is coming to an end, we would like to thank you all for your participation today. We hope that we could guide you through our Acomo brand and the companies and the insights that we have. Now we will have some drinks from outside. So please join us there. And also please join us at future events. Thank you all.