A

gainst the current backdrop

of geopolitical upheaval, we

are witnessing the emergence

of attitudes and statements

that present economic and environmental

performance as polar opposites. How-

ever, the truth is that every day, the world

of agriculture — which both contributes

to climate change and is the first to be

impacted by its effects — demonstrates

the importance of combining perfor-

mance with sustainability to ensure the

long-term future of the system. We remain

fully convinced of this approach, and

are reasserting our commitment to sup-

porting the transition in agricultural

practices and ensuring food security by pro-

viding sustainable and eff icient solutions.

Succeeding in this challenge is our responsi-

bility and is central to our Ambition 2030

corporate strategy. Improving the sustaina-

bility of our products and services is now a

strategic priority alongside close customer

relationships, innovation and operational

excellence. In addition to our product-fo-

cused commitment, the CSR dimension is

becoming a valuable compass for assessing

the potential of each new project to con-

tribute to delivering our strategy.

Jorge Boucas

Group Chief Executive Of f icer

Introduction by Jorge Boucas

“So I hope we can agree to making this

another special year for all the men and

women who have made the Group the

powerful force it is today, and for our

farmers, to whom we owe so much.”

Having a compass is useful only if we chart

a clear course and prioritise those actions

required to successfully address our key

challenges so that we can focus our energy

and resources on them. The carbon foot-

print analysis conducted in 2024 drew our

attention to the real-life impact of nitrogen

fertilisation and the importance of the inno-

vative work we are carrying out to mitigate

it. We have also put a major challenge into

words: making all types of fertilisation more

efficient to increase agricultural yields, at

the same time as reducing resources and

associated losses. This solution meets the

expectations of the farming community by

contributing simultaneously to mitigating

climate change and adapting to its conse-

quences.

It is important to remember that control-

ling CO

2

emissions has always been a major

focus for us as a company. That commit-

ment is clear from the fact that we installed

our f irst biomass boilers in Brazil more than

twenty years ago. Our decision to formalise

our climate trajectory in 2022 was made in

response to high stakeholder expectations,

and sets out a clear method, framework and

timetable for ramping up our efforts in the

years ahead. To ensure that our ambition

becomes a reality, we announced a €65 mil-

lion investment plan during the year to

decarbonise our manufacturing processes

by 2030.

With our carbon trajectory now on tar-

get and our R&D centre laser-focused on

product sustainability, we have set our

sights on taking our employee priority com-

mitment to a new level in 2025 through

enhanced talent development. The major

projects for this year include publication of

our first Group employee barometer sur-

vey, which, in combination with our internal

audit best HR practices, provides a decisive

basis for developing an ambitious roadmap.

We are also pressing ahead with our CSR

strategy as we respond to the challenge of

moving faster and further on employment

issues, without compromising the guaran-

teed implementation of our plans for pro-

duct sustainability and the decarbonisation

of manufacturing and agriculture. So I hope

we can all agree to making this another spe-

cial year for all the men and women who

have made the Group the powerful force it

is today, and for our farmers, to whom we

owe so much.

Non-Financial Performance Statement 2024 3