Novozymes expects agricultural division to have 86% higher turnover in Brazil

By Leonardo Gottems, reporter for AgroPages

Novozymes has predicted that its agricultural division will increase sales by 86% in Brazil this year, projecting a total expansion of the biopesticides market at 29%.

In the first half of the year, Novozymes' revenue from sales of inoculants and biopesticides rose 64%.

In 2020, the global revenue of this Danish origin company was around US$450 million, of which 30% came from Brazil. This year, the goal is to reach 50%.

The remunerative price of soy, which accounts for 80% to 85% of sales, is the main driving force, in addition to the greater demand for sustainable inputs. The company hopes to reach a 12% market share at the end of the year with the advance, compared to the current 10%.

"The expectation considers the orders already contracted for application in the 2021-22 harvest, which will be delivered and billed in the second half,” explained Maximiliano D'Alessio, Director of Operations in Latin America.

Novozymes' better performance in the country should also come from a stronger presence in the Brazilian Midwest, with significant resales of agricultural inputs. It estimates that it holds 12% of the market in the region and expects to end the harvest with 13%.

Today, the company works with 800 distributor networks and plans to reach 1,000 by the end of the year. The most recent partnership was closed with Fiagril, which operates in Mato Grosso, Tocantins and Amapá.

D'Alessio explained that Novozymes' contribution in the 2021-22 harvest was to create a technology that makes biological products compatible with chemicals. The company invests 10% of its annual revenue in research and development in the country.

A quarter of the sales should come from four new products included in the portfolio this year. For the coming harvests, the focus is also on partnerships with chemical input manufacturers to sell their biotechnology. There are ongoing negotiations with FMC, Syngenta and UPL, the executive revealed.