Bayer Cropscience Q1 PAT remains flat at Rs 254 cr

On a standalone basis, Bayer Cropscience net profit rose 0.8% to Rs 253.70 crore on 15.3% increase in net sales to Rs 1,415.90 crore in Q1 June 2021 (Q1 FY22) over Q1 June 2020 (Q1 FY21).

Profit before tax gained 2.4% to Rs 320 crore in Q1 FY22 as against Rs 312.60 crore in Q1 FY21. The Q1 result was declared after market hours yesterday, 13 August 2021.

Commenting on the Q1 results, D. Narain, the chief executive officer (CEO) and managing director (MD) of Bayer CropScience, said, "In an environment that saw continued COVID-19 related challenges around market access, farmer liquidity, production & logistics, our Q1 sales continued its double-digit growth in FY 2021-22, building on a similar growth trajectory from Q1 of FY 2020-21. This was driven by strong crop protection sales and product liquidation, continuing the trend from previous quarters. Our hybrid corn seed supplies were affected by delayed availability of some key hybrids due to late harvesting and crop acre shifts. Despite this, we delivered Q1 of FY 2021-22 volumes at par with Q1 of FY 2020-21, which had also seen a strong double-digit growth compared to Q1 of FY 2019-20."

Elaborating further on overall profitability for the quarter, D. Narain stated, "Our hybrid seeds distribution business especially in cotton and rice was significantly impacted due to overall market conditions and supply constraints. Despite this, we registered a strong growth in gross profit mainly driven by our crop protection business. The continuing COVID-19 environment diluted our overall profitability growth due to higher logistic costs, higher costs of corn seed production and a return to near-normal operating cost levels in Q1 of FY 2021-22, compared to Q1 of FY 2020-21 where field activities had to be abruptly halted due to COVID-19 restrictions."

In Q1 FY2021-22, Bayer CropScience continued to scale-up its smallholder initiative 'Better Life Farming' to 9 states in India with 600+ Better Life Farming Centers, despite several COVID-19 challenges. The company's strategic efforts to acquire new farmer customers via expansion of new business models, including the Better Life Farming Centers and broader portfolio access continued to see strong growth momentum in line with its long-term growth strategy.

Sharing an outlook for the future, D. Narain, stated, "With COVID-19, the external business environment remains uncertain in the short term. However, with increasing emphasis on good health and nutrition, the agriculture industry is poised for strong growth. Bayer CropScience will continue to support Indian smallholders with access to innovative seeds & crop protection inputs, crop advisory and capacity building on the use of modern agronomic practices. In order to widen the reach of our agri-solutions, we will continue to expand value chain collaborations, e-commerce partnerships, support scale-up of farmer collectives and introduce tailored digital farming solutions."

Meanwhile, the company announced the resignation of Rolf Hoffmann as an executive director and chief financial officer (CFO) of the company with effect from 31 August 2021. The company announced the appointment of Simon Britsch as an additional director with effect from 1 September 2021 and designated as whole-time director and CFO of the company with effect from 1 September 2021.

Bayer CropScience is a global enterprise with core competencies in the life science fields of healthcare and nutrition.

Shares of Bayer CropScience rallied 3.70% to close at Rs 6,090.90 on BSE.

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