EXPORT rice company SunRice has reported bumper profits driven by an abundance of rice growth, especially in the Riverina.
The company delivered a net profit after tax of $54.8 million for the 2022-23 financial year, up 12 per cent from the previous year.
Chief executive Rob Gordon said the past year had been an “outstanding year for SunRice”.
“We delivered the highest group revenue, naturally determined paddy price and total fully franked dividend in the company’s 73-year history, despite a challenging inflationary environment,” Mr Gordon said.
“This impressive financial performance reflects the strength and resilience of our strategy and business model, and the focused efforts of our people to deliver value for both classes of shareholders.”
Mr Gordon said the group was “well positioned” to continue its momentum in the 2023-24 financial year.
“We remain focused on maintaining a strong balance sheet, continuing to explore a well-developed pipeline of potential strategic opportunities and reinforcing our established branded position,” he said.
The past-year results were driven by the abundance of Australian rice, with the Riverina crop more than 65 per cent larger than 2020-21, supporting strong sales volumes in key premium markets and expansion in new and existing territories impacted by drought.
On the downside, however, the company noted the escalation in freight and distribution costs due to ongoing disruption to domestic and international supply chains, and widespread inflationary pressures.
Discussing the outlook for the Australian rice pool, Mr Gordon said while opportunities still existed in the short-term for Australian rice and international supply chains, these were expected to be countered to a degree by the drought in the United States breaking earlier than originally expected.
“Given the likely resulting increase in competition in key markets in FY2024 and a reduction in global rice prices in both consumer and tender markets, the paddy price range of $390 to $450 per tonne announced in February 2023 for the CY23 crop remains in place at this stage,” he said.
“The outlook for CY24 crop plantings, which will be processed and marketed in FY2025, also remains positive with southern New South Wales water storages currently over 90 per cent full.
“This is expected to result in a fourth consecutive year of abundant Australian rice production in FY2025, with the Riverina storage and milling asset footprint expected to fully recover its operating costs.”
