MP Evans Group PLC (AIM:MPE) told investors that its first-half processed crop volumes were up 2% compared to the same period last year.
The producer of sustainable Indonesian palm oil, in a statement, highlighted that it now expects to see higher cropping levels as it moves into the second half of the year.
Total crops from fresh fruit bunches (ffb) totalled 721,100 tonnes in the first half of 2023 – comprising 408,100 tonnes from MP Evans' own crops, 124,900 tonnes from scheme smallholders and 188,100 independently purchased tonnes.
It resulted in 166,200 tonnes of crude palm oil (CPO) and 34,600 tonnes of palm kernels (PK), versus 160,800 tonnes and 35,100 tonnes of CPO and PK comparatives from the first half of 2022.
MP Evans noted that its realised CPO price was US$755 per tonne at the ‘mill gate’, versus last year’s price of US$1,035 amidst the outbreak of war in Ukraine. Similarly, the PK price was US$410 per tonne compared to US$830.
The company highlighted that last year’s pricing was “exceptionally high” and a reaction to the impact of the war on commodity markets.