Dutch tree nurseries will remember the past season as an eventful one. That is what Van Oers Agro concludes in its 2021-2022 report. Last year, the counter was mainly on record positions; this year, analysts see nuance in the past financial year. Companies' figures are, generally, still excellent, but there are some changes.
Labor and resource availability remains an issue; now, the war in Ukraine has brought new challenges. Bush and hedge companies' revenues are up, with losses being corrected in April-June.
Container plant companies' turnovers are roughly the same as last year. Here, however, revenues dropped more in April-June than in February-March. Growers in this sector cultivate visually attractive plants, which makes them more sensitive to inflation.
Full soil businesses' sales grew by five percent - less than the previous year - says Van Oers Agro. And EBITDA fell across the board.
Theunis Mulders, Van Oers Agro's director, explains the main findings: "The 2021-2022 season was eventful. Global developments caused consumer confidence to drop, and the figures reflect that. The entire season's turnover remaining the same as 2020-2021 was largely thanks to a good fall. You can clearly see increased commodity prices and the decline in consumer confidence's direct and indirect impact from April onwards. Nevertheless, the figures are still good."
Fall 2022 forecast
The fall outlook is cautious. "Consumer confidence should improve slightly but will remain low. That affects companies with short cultivation periods, something already happening in the container plant cultivation companies. Hedge plants, too, will probably be in lower demand. Yet, greening and sustainability are recurring themes, which will keep demand for nursery products high in the long term," Theunis concludes.
The report explores exports, labor costs, casual staff, resource margins, EBITDA, and consumer confidence. You can see the complete sector report here.