Australis significantly ahead of Chilean rivals in terms of salmon feed conversion rate and mortality control.
Chinese industrial conglomerate Jia Wo Agricultural Development (Joyvio) has released its semi-annual report for 2021.
In 2018, Joyvio bought Chilean salmon farmer Australis Seafood for US$920 million (€763.6 million).
The report shows that the salmon business contributed 1.553 billion yuan (€203 million) in operating income in the first half of the year, a year-on-year increase of 19 per cent, accounting for 70 per cent of total revenue. With the control and disappearance of the pandemic, the price of salmon at home and abroad has achieved rapid recovery and has reached a historically high level since June.
Global demand
In the first half of 2021, Jia wo Foods overseas subsidiaries sold a total of approximately 46,000 tons of fish, a year-on-year increase of 23 per cent. Among them, Atlantic salmon sales reached 35,900 tons and trout sales reached 10,100 tons, an increase of 25 per cent and 55 per cent respectively.
During the reporting period, Australis business gross interest rates increased substantially from the level of -8.3 per cent in the first quarter to 6.9 per cent in the second quarter. The recovery in global salmon market demand and rising prices have driven substantial growth in the core business, enabling the company to turn losses into profits in a single quarter.
Global demand has increased salmon market prices and brought higher yields for companies. Spot prices in the European market rose by 18 per cent, and prices in the Americas rose by about 50 per cent. With the gradual alleviation of the pandemic, catering demand is predicted to gradually pick up, and retail demand will also remain at a relatively high level.
Feed conversion
The semi-annual report also shows that Australis is significantly ahead of Chilean companies in the same industry in terms of salmon feed conversion rate and mortality control. According to the authoritative statistics of Aquabench, a salmon industry information company, the average feed conversion rate (that is, the weight of feed required to convert one kilogram of salmon weight) in the Chilean salmon farming industry in the first half of 2021 is 1.42. During the same period, Australis recorded a feed conversion rate is 1.25, which is better than the industry average; the average cumulative mortality rate of the Chilean salmon industry in the first half of 2021 is 15.8 per cent, and the average cumulative mortality rate of Australis salmon in the same period is controlled below 6.1 per cent, which is much lower than the industry average value.
Joyvio has sought to capture demand among the middle-class in China by promoting salmon as a functional food for babies, office workers, and health-conscious consumers. Joyvio prominently displays its Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) certification on its products in an effort to address food safety concerns in China.
Formerly known as Wanfu Biotechnology Hunan Agricultural Development Co, Joyvio Group is a subsidiary of Legend Holdings, the Hong Kong-listed technology-focused entity, which made a big bet on food distribution and production in the past decade to cash in on rising demand among China’s middle class.
