The proposals are accessible on the website of the meeting: https://marel.com/investors/shareholder-center/shareholder-meetings/
Chairman of the Board Ásthildur Otharsdóttir addressed the meeting on behalf of the Board. CEO Árni Oddur Thórdarson reported the Company’s 2019 consolidated financial statements and gave an overview of the Company’s business activities.
From Chairman Ásthildur Otharsdóttir’s statement:
“These extraordinary times are a stark reminder of the importance of access to safe food for everyone. Looking beyond the global pandemic, feeding the world’s growing population is one of the biggest challenges facing society today. We must find new ways to produce quality food sustainably and affordably, and do more with less. Otherwise, in the context of climate change, Earth’s limited resources and the unfathomable waste in the food value chain, the estimated seventy percent increase in demand for food over the next thirty years simply does not add up.
Marel is in a unique position to realize its purpose and deliver fit-for-purpose solutions that meet the current and future demands of food processors and consumers. We remain committed to the ambitious 10-year growth targets we announced in 2017. Our growth will be balanced between organic and acquired, and achieved by capitalizing on investments in innovation and market reach, complemented by strategic acquisitions and partnerships. There are ample consolidation opportunities in our market and Marel has a strong financial position to facilitate future strategic moves.”
CEO Árni Oddur Thórdarson’s report:
“We enter 2020 on a strong note. Marel is in a very good competitive position, financially strong with a solid cash flow. We have seen record order intake year to date and with passion and dedication, our united Marel team is focusing on delivering the right quality at the right time although in current logistic challenges the cost will be higher.
We are in a fortunate situation, financially strong with newly issued equity in relation to the dual listing. To further increase our operational and strategic flexibility and to support the company’s long-term strategy, we secured a EUR 700 million senior long-term syndicated credit facility at the beginning of 2020. Last week we withdrew EUR 600 million as a precautionary measure and will see a high cash position at the end of the quarter.
Marel is one of the most important infrastructure companies in poultry, meat and fish processing that is securing delivery of safe and affordable food in partnership with processors around the world. We restate our mid-term 2023 and long-term 2026 financial targets.”
The following candidates were elected to serve on the Board of Directors until the Company’s next Annual General Meeting:
Ann Elisabeth Savage
Arnar Thór Másson
Ásthildur Margrét Otharsdóttir
Ástvaldur Jóhannsson
Lillie Li Valeur
Dr Ólafur Gudmundsson
Ton van der Laan
After serving on the Board of Directors for 14 years, Margrét Jónsdóttir did not declare candidature. The Board would like to extend its gratitude for her undisputed loyalty and valuable contribution throughout the years. Lillie Li Valeur is a new director elected to the Board. Valeur is born in 1970 and is the CEO for Good Food Group in Denmark. During the last 18 years, Valeur held several senior managerial roles at Arla Foods, both in Asia and globally, including VP Greater China, VP South East Asia and VP Global Milk Based Beverages. Prior to that, she was Manager of Strategic Sourcing & Commercialization and Director for Business Development & Licensing at Novartis in Shanghai and Management Consultant at Bain & Company in Beijing. Valeur was a member of the Board of Directors and Audit Committee of Aarhus Karlshamn AB, listed on Nasdaq Stockholm, from 2013 to 2020 and Meda AB from 2015 to 2016.
The new Board of Directors has convened and assigned roles and responsibilities. Ásthildur Margrét Otharsdóttir will continue as Chairman of the Board and Arnar Thór Másson, as the Vice-Chairman of the Board.
KPMG ehf. was elected as the Company’s auditing firm until the next Annual General Meeting.
Video recordings of the report of the Chairman of the Board and the CEO will be made available at the website of the meeting.
Marel’s Annual Report for 2019 was published today, and is available at the following website:
Further information on votes cast at the meeting are hereby attached.
Investor Relations
For further information, please contact Marel Investor Relations via email IR@marel.com and tel. +354 563 8001.
About Marel
Marel (NASDAQ: MAREL; AEX: MAREL) is a leading global provider of advanced food processing equipment, systems, software and services to the poultry, meat and fish industries. Our united team of 6,300 employees in over 30 countries delivered around EUR 1.3 billion in revenues in 2019. Annually, Marel invests around 6% of revenues in innovation. By continuously transforming food processing, we enable our customers to increase yield and throughput, ensure food safety and improve sustainability in food production. Marel was listed on NASDAQ Iceland in 1992 and dual-listed on Euronext Amsterdam in June 2019.