Growth of Sustainability-enabling Products and Services Drives Syngenta Group''s Record H1 2021

H1 Group sales at $14.4 billion (+$2.8 billion), +24 percent year-on-year. Q2 Group sales of $7.4 billion (+$1.6 billion), +28 percent year-on-year.

H1 EBITDA at $2.7 billion, +22 percent year-on-year. Q2 EBITDA at $1.2 billion, +25 percent year-on-year.

First half performance shows strong demand from farmers for sustainable products and services.

Growth driven by Group’s innovation in seeds and crop protection products that enable regenerative agricultural practices.

The Modern Agriculture Platform (MAP), which provides farmers with access to market-leading products and services, more than tripled sales year-on-year.

Syngenta biologicals sales, including Valagro, grew 27 percent in H1, strengthening the Group’s leading position in this high growth segment.

On 26th Aug. Syngenta Group reported strong financial results for the second quarter and first half ended June 30, 2021. Group sales in second quarter were $7.4 billion, up 28 percent versus Q2 2020 (+20 percent at CER). EBITDA increased in the second quarter 25 percent (+21 percent at CER) to $1.2 billion.

Group sales for the first half of 2021 were $14.4 billion, up 24 percent year-on-year (+18 percent at CER). EBITDA for the first half of the year was $2.7 billion, 22 percent higher year-on-year (+25 percent at CER).

Prices of most grains remained robust during the first half of 2021, resulting in increased planted area and higher demand. Demand was strongest for Syngenta Group products that help farmers combat ongoing drought conditions in North and Latin America, especially the western United States and Brazil, as well as cold snaps in Europe and floods worldwide.

Strong Syngenta Group first quarter 2021 performance continued in the second quarter. All business units achieved double-digit growth in the first half of 2021. EBITDA margin held, despite logistics and cost inflation, driven by new innovations and productivity.

The Group has invested heavily in agtech and has leading technology in precision agriculture, wheat hybridization, biotechnology and gene editing traits. Through strategic investments, Syngenta Group has created multiple digital platforms with farm management tools that help farmer sustainability and increase sales. Syngenta Group biologicals sales, including Valagro, demonstrated 27 percent growth in the first half which further strengthens the Group’s leading position in this rapidly growing market.

Growth was supported by channel and farmer stock-building due to COVID-19-related logistics concerns.

Syngenta Group China delivered strong growth across all segments. MAP sales more than tripled to $0.9 billion in the first half by providing farmers with products and services that enable them to grow more sustainably and produce higher quality crops that can be sold at higher prices. This farmer-focused ecosystem continued to expand in China, adding 87 new centers since the beginning of the year. At the end of June, there are 413 MAP centers, with over 200 partner organizations and 37 MAP beSide? products that connect consumers to the farms where their food is grown. Syngenta Group China’s performance has also been enhanced by the Group’s effective intellectual property protection efforts.

Successful acquisitions, such as Winall Hi-tech Seed and Jiangsu Huifeng Bio Agriculture’s crop protection business, finalized in the first half of 2021, further strengthened the Group’s capabilities to serve Chinese farmers.

Synergy-driven sales increased 90 percent in the first six months to more than $0.3 billion and a profit contribution of $0.1 billion.

“Our continued strong performance and results demonstrate how our teams around the world are serving farmers and helping them address the challenges of COVID-19 and be part of the solution to climate change. We are focused on developing and launching products and services that enable farmers to grow good crops despite drought, heat, flooding, and high wind or other weather extremes,” said Syngenta Group CEO Erik Fyrwald. “Our results demonstrate that we are meeting the needs of local growers not only with our sustainable products, but also with our digitally enabled services.”

Syngenta Group CFO Chen Lichtenstein said, “Our teams have again delivered double-digit sales and strong profit growth across all our business units. We have launched innovative products, tapped into growth synergies for the Group, controlled costs, and managed to meet the increased demand of our customers even as the pandemic continues. Our focus on R&D and targeted acquisitions will help us drive future growth.”