Of Inghams Group Limited. On behalf of the board, the management team, and all of our staff, I'd like to welcome you to our 2025 Annual General Meeting. It is now 10:00, I think a little bit past, and as we have a quorum present, I declare the 2025 Annual General Meeting of Inghams Group Limited open. On behalf of Inghams, I would like to acknowledge the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation on whose land we meet today. I pay my respects to their elders past and present, and to any Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples joining us here today. To briefly outline the agenda for today's meeting, I will give my chair's address.
Your Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Ed Alexander, will then give his address, and I will then move to the formal items of business and resolutions as set out in our notice of meeting. Following this, we will open the meeting to general business and questions. This year's meeting is being held as a hybrid meeting, and a guide to the online meeting platform has been made available on the Investor Centre on our website. Voting today will be conducted by way of a poll on all items of business. For our shareholders attending virtually and eligible to vote, once voting opens, you can select the vote icon, and all your resolutions will be activated with voting options. To cast your vote, simply select one of the options, and your vote will be automatically recorded.
You are able to amend your vote up until the time that I declare the meeting closed. For those attending the meeting in person and eligible to vote, you should have received a blue voting card at registration. If you believe you're entitled to vote and have not received the correct voting card, please see Computershare staff at the registration table. To cast your vote, simply complete and sign the back of the card. A Computershare representative will collect your voting card at the end of the meeting. I'll provide a notification at the end of all items of business before I move to closing voting. If we experience technical difficulties in the broadcasting of the AGM to shareholders, we will pause the meeting and aim to recommence it at the earliest opportunity. If these difficulties persist, I will assess the circumstances and then communicate further with you.
If we take steps to adjourn the meeting, we'll make an announcement to the ASX with all relevant details. Computershare is the returning officer for this meeting, and the final results will be released to the market and the Inghams website later today. I now declare the meeting and voting open. How to ask a question. For our shareholders attending in person, those in possession of either a blue voting card or a yellow non-voting card are welcome to ask questions, while those with a white visitor card are not able to ask questions during the meeting. If you believe you've not received the right card, please go to the registration desk where Computershare will assist you. We have placed microphones towards the front of the room. If you have a question on a relevant item of business, please proceed to one of the microphones.
I will indicate when we're ready to take your question, at which time please introduce yourself and ask your question. Virtual attendees can submit questions at any time. To do so, please select the Q&A icon at the top of the screen. Select the topic your question relates to from the drop-down list, and then type your question into the text box. Once finished, please press the send button. I will address questions during the discussion about the relevant items of business. Please note that your questions may be moderated, or if we receive multiple questions on the same topic, similar questions may be amalgamated. For those shareholders who wish to ask a verbal question via the telephone line, please follow the instructions below the broadcast. We will make every attempt to answer all your questions today.
I would like to thank shareholders who submitted questions in advance of today's AGM. These questions have been reviewed and will be addressed at the appropriate point during the meeting. If time constraints prevent us from doing this, responses to unanswered questions will be posted in the Investor Centre after the meeting. I'd like to introduce you to your other board members here today. Starting from my immediate right, we have Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Ed Alexander. Then we have Non-Executive Director, Linda Bardon Nichols, AO. Non-Executive Director, Rob Gordon, who is standing for re-election today. You'll hear from Rob later. Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Risk and Sustainability Committee, Margie Hesselstein. Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Finance and Audit Committee, Mike Ihlein.
Non-Executive Director and Chair of the People and Remuneration Committee, Tim Longstaff, who is also standing for re-election today, and you will hear from Tim later. Our newly refreshed executive leadership team are seated in the front row. Many over there, also some in the front here, and Ed will introduce you to each of them in his address. We also have KPMG partner, Trent Duval, representing our external auditor in the front row. Trent will be available during the formal items of business to respond to questions relevant to the conduct of the audit and the preparation and the content of the independent auditor's report. Thank you, Trent. Turning now to my presentation. Fellow shareholders, FY25 was a year of stable financial results and measured progress for our company as we navigated through a challenging operating environment.
While we delivered underlying EBITDA pre-ASB 16 of AUD 236.4 million, which was slightly above the prior year's record results, it was disappointing to see a weaker earnings trend develop in the final quarter. This was caused by the effect of higher production settings and lower expected volumes following the Woolworths Supply Agreement renewal, and as a result, some temporary production inefficiencies resulting in higher unit costs and inventories. Statutory net profit after tax of AUD 97.2 million was 2.9% lower than the prior year. As a result, we declared or paid dividends in respect of FY25 of AUD 0.19 per share, one cent per share lower than the prior year, representing a payout ratio of 72.7%. The FY25 results reflected a challenging macroeconomic environment marked by persistent inflationary pressures and the impacts of the renewal of the Woolworths Supply Agreement and evolving consumer behaviours.
We continued our focus on delivering our strategic agenda and investing in important growth initiatives. The successful completion of the Bostock Brothers acquisitions in New Zealand strengthened our position in that market, while our processing network investment program across Australia and New Zealand is well underway. The release of our softer-than-expected FY26 earnings outlook in August has been reflected in our share price, which has declined approximately 33% since that time. The outlook reflects the impact of the Woolworths Supply Agreement renewal, a roll forward of the challenging market conditions that emerged in the fourth quarter of FY25, and specific operational cost pressures across inventory management, farming, and processing performance, and our turkey operations.
I acknowledge that these issues and the performance of our share price are deeply disappointing for all shareholders, and I want to assure you that your Board and management team are responding with urgency and discipline through a range of measures which are expected to position the company for stronger performance in the second half of FY2026 and beyond. Safety is integral to the way we operate, and the safety of our teams, contractors, and visitors plays a key role in our success. I am pleased to report that the company achieved a further improvement in safety performance during FY2025. The total recordable injury frequency rate improved by 3.6% from the prior year, exceeding our target of a 3% improvement.
Over the last six years, there's been a total improvement of 57% in this key safety measure, reflecting the company's comprehensive approach to workplace health and safety and creating a safer environment for all of our people. Our commitment to sustainable practices has also supported measurable improvements in our environmental impact. We have maintained 100% RSPCA Approved and SPCA Certified accreditations across all our broiler farming facilities, and we achieved an average Global Food Safety Initiative (BRC) rating of A or better, with 80% of our sites earning AA ratings. We achieved a significant sustainability milestone during the year, with our New Zealand operations moving to 100% renewable electricity. The 20-year agreement to supply New Zealand operations with electricity from solar farms provides Inghams with a competitive long-term electricity pricing, enabling us to meet our sustainability goals without significant upfront capital costs.
In Australia, we achieved our climate-active carbon-neutral certification for our Marion Bay Chicken brand, making this Australia's first carbon-neutral certified chicken brand. We also exceeded our 50% recycled content packaging target, achieved 28% waste intensity reduction, and reduced our water intensity by 2.7%. For those who are interested in reading more about our initiatives and results, our updated sustainability report in our 2025 Annual Report is a valuable resource. At the end of FY25, Andrew Reeves retired as Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director. Andrew made a tremendous contribution to Inghams after coming into the role from his position as a Non-Executive Director on the board. He led the company for over four years through a significant period in its history, including unprecedented challenges posed by the global pandemic. He successfully stabilized our operations and delivered significant growth in profitability over that time.
Andrew also contributed strongly to the culture of the business, and as a keen developer of executive talent, he was instrumental in building organizational capability and capacity. On behalf of the board, I thank Andrew for his significant contribution to Inghams' success and wish him well in his future endeavors. Following a robust global search process, the board was delighted to appoint Ed Alexander as our new CEO and Managing Director. Ed's appointment exemplifies Andrew's successful focus on nurturing internal leadership talent. Ed brings a deep knowledge of our business from his 10-plus years with Inghams, most recently as Chief Executive in New Zealand, where he delivered outstanding results, doubling EBITDA between FY22 and FY24, achieving significant gains in customer partnerships and reducing employee turnover through a systematic focus on people, partnerships, and innovation. You will hear from Ed shortly.
Aside from our CEO transition, there were no changes to the composition or membership of the board during FY25. We were very pleased to welcome Rob Gordon back to board duties following his approved medical leave of absence at the beginning of FY25. At this year's AGM, pursuant to the ASX listing rules and the company's constitution, both Rob and Tim are standing for re-election. You will hear from them both in their re-election resolutions a little later. Turning now to a review of remuneration, starting with the FY25 outcomes and starting with our short-term incentive plan, or STIP. Payments under this plan are conditional on the achievement of performance objectives against a key financial measure, three non-financial ESG measures, and the individual's overall performance in contributing to the achievement of our group's strategic objectives. The financial performance measure is underlying EBITDA pre-ASB 16, representing 70% of the STIP scorecard.
Based on overall company performance, the balance scorecard outcome in FY25 was 69.5 out of a total of 120, resulting in 57.9% of maximum. This outcome reflects a below-target financial performance, partially offset by strong outcomes across all three ESG measures. For KMP, our former CEO achieved an initial STIP outcome of 46.3% of maximum based on the scorecard result and his 100% individual multiplier. The board determined that it was appropriate to apply downward discretion to reduce the former CEO's FY25 STIP outcome by 35%, primarily as a result of the weaker FY26 outlook due to the volume reduction from the new Woolworths Supply Agreement. This resulted in a final STIP outcome for Andrew Reeves of 30.1% of maximum. Our CFO, Gary Mallett, achieved a STIP outcome of 41.7% of maximum, which also included a downward discretion of 10%.
Downward adjustments were also made to the remuneration outcomes of several other executives. For the long-term incentive plan, or LTIP, the vesting for the FY23 to FY25 plan was 91.05%. The performance of the company on the relative total shareholder return measure was at the 72nd percentile, which resulted in 93.4% of rights vesting for 50% of the LTIP scorecard. The return on invested capital measure was 19.6% in FY25, resulting in a vesting level of 88.71% for the remaining 50% of the LTIP scorecard. Following the company's FY25 results, the absolute total shareholder return was calculated for the 2022 one-off performance rights grant to the then CEO, Andrew Reeves, and CFO, Gary Mallett, as approved by shareholders at the 2022 AGM. Due to the significant share price decline after the release of our FY25 results, the total shareholder return outcome resulted in this award vesting at 0%.
On board remuneration in FY25, there was a benchmarking process undertaken to review the board fee structure. As a result of this review, the board determined there would be no increase in non-executive director board fees. More details on non-executive director remuneration can be found starting on page 71 of the 2025 Annual Report. As keen followers of the company have previously heard me note, Inghams' remuneration strategy and structure is designed to support our purpose, ambition, values, and behaviors, with incentives to create value for our shareholders, customers, and the community over the short, medium, and long term. The performance-based elements include an equity component, which is designed to foster a business ownership approach. Total fixed remuneration is reviewed annually, with each review considering a variety of factors such as comparable market rates, responsibilities and experience in the role, business impact, and the recognition of desired behaviors.
The announcement on the 4th of December last year of Ed's appointment as Inghams' new CEO and MD included disclosure of his remuneration arrangements. I would like to note that Ed's remuneration arrangements for FY26 are lower than those of our former CEO and MD. There was no change to the FY26 total fixed remuneration for our CFO, Gary Mallett. During FY25, the board carried out a review of both the short and long-term incentive plans. This work is detailed more fully in the remuneration report, which forms part of our annual report. The basic structure of the FY26 short-term incentive plan remains unchanged, with a 70-30 mix between financial and non-financial measures. The non-financial measures emphasize the importance of ESG to our business. While the people safety and food safety measures remain unchanged, we are altering the water usage measure from water consumption to a water withdrawn measure.
This change provides a better measure of our environmental impact by capturing the total demand we place on local water sources, recognizing the capital outlays on water treatment and reclamation, and aligns with our sustainability-linked loan measure. For our long-term incentive plan, the FY26 to FY28 structure also remains unchanged from the prior year, being based on two equally weighted performance measures of underlying pre-ASB 16 based return on invested capital and relative total shareholder return. This mix of performance measures seeks to achieve the close alignment of our executives with shareholders, as indicated by the strong shareholder support it has previously received. The FY26 to FY28 ROIC measure has a lower threshold and maximum levels than prior years.
The levels set by our board reflect both the earnings forecast outlined in our FY26 earnings guidance and an upward trend in capital employed as Inghams invests in the refurbishment, efficiency, and expansion of its production capacity. The board acknowledges that while the ROIC hurdles for FY26 to FY28 have been lowered due to both an increase in capital employed and a softer earnings outlook, the company is still investing above its weighted average cost of capital, and the board remains focused on ensuring future targets continue to align with shareholder value creation beyond FY26. I would also like to emphasize the fact that the board has set the plan hurdles with greater emphasis on stretch outcomes.
Overall, the board is committed to ensuring the remuneration strategy reflects good governance and is transparent in its design to support the business strategy and drive sustainable outperformance for shareholders over the short, medium, and long term. For those who wish to read more, the remuneration report starts on page 50 of the 2025 Annual Report. As we look ahead, the poultry sector remains an attractive and growing one, underpinned by several significant advantages, including a price advantage and well-established health benefits over red meat. We have work to do to restore the operational, financial, and therefore share price performance of the business, and I want to assure you that we're responding with urgency and discipline. Your board has complete confidence in our new CEO and the refreshed leadership team now in place across the business.
The depth of experience they bring, combined with the fresh perspectives and renewed energy that is evident throughout the business, positions us very well to address the challenges that we currently face and capitalise on the opportunities that lie ahead. The board looks forward to working closely with them as they build momentum across our operations and deliver on our collective ambitions for the company, and I really look forward to being able to present an improved picture and outlook to you next year. I will now hand over to your Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Ed Alexander, to take you through more of the detail that underpins our business and performance. Thank you, Ed.
Thank you, Helen, and good morning, everyone. It's great to be here with you today as Inghams' Chief Executive Officer, and I want to start by adding my welcome to you all, whether you're joining online or in person. Inghams is the largest integrated poultry producer operating across Australia and New Zealand, and our diverse network provides us with important and real advantage. Our national network means that we can manage biosecurity risk, we can ensure great service to our customers, and we can efficiently and effectively service every major retail and food service channel with confidence. Because we are vertically integrated from feed mill and farming through to production and distribution, we have control over every step of the production process. That control means that we can manage quality and cost, and we can keep the right balance between supply and demand.
When we get this balance right and we pair it with operational excellence, we grow returns sustainably over time. As Helen noted earlier, Inghams delivered solid financial results in FY25. It showed the strength and resilience of our business, even in a tough market and through a period of significant change. FY25 was a tale of two markets. Group core poultry volumes were down 1.4%, driven by a decline in Australian volumes, partially offset by strong growth through New Zealand, which was aided by the strong retail channel performance as well as the Bostock Brothers' acquisition. Group revenue totaled AUD 3.15 billion, which was slightly lower than FY24 and in line with our volume performance. EBITDA pre-ASB 16 was AUD 236.4 million, slightly above the prior corresponding period and representing a solid performance despite market conditions in Australia in the final quarter.
In Australia, cost of living pressures and changes to the Woolworths Supply Agreement created headwinds, but we made real progress, broadening our customer base, and that's something we'll continue to build upon. In New Zealand, the story was different. The turnaround there has been strong, with stable operations, great brand performance, and the Bostock Brothers acquisition all combining to drive volume and earnings growth. Underlying net profit post-ASB 16 was AUD 97.2 million, down 2.9% on the prior corresponding period, and we paid total dividends of AUD 0.19, which was slightly below the AUD 0.20 paid in FY25 and representing a healthy payout ratio of just over 72%. As Helen mentioned earlier, the softer-than-expected FY26 outlook we released in August has clearly had an impact on our share price.
That outlook was shaped by a slower FY25 exit run rate, weaker wholesale economics, and some temporary production inefficiencies as we worked through frozen excess inventory and adjusted down our production settings. The company has initiatives in place to address the above issues, and I'll discuss current trading and our outlook in more detail shortly. Since stepping into the role of CEO in July of this year, I've spent time examining how we're structured and how we operate as a business. In a market that's moving as quickly as ours, it's essential that we're organized for speed, accountability, productivity, and growth. Through that review, it became clear that we needed to reshape our operating model and refresh our leadership team to set the business up for its next era. That work started in June of this year with the appointment of Caroline Hayes as Inghams' new Chief Growth Officer.
Caroline joined Inghams in 2020 as General Manager Procurement before being appointed General Manager Sales and Marketing in New Zealand in 2022. In 2023, her remit was expanded to include both New Zealand strategy as well as the newly acquired Bostock Brothers business. Caroline has delivered results in every facet of remit, from delivering top-line growth to revitalizing the Inghams and Waitau brands in New Zealand to successfully integrating Bostock Brothers. As Chief Growth Officer, Caroline will lead our growth agenda across both countries, driving innovation, building our brands, and finding new ways to create new value. In September, Clare Stevenson was appointed to the role of Chief Customer Officer, replacing Mark Powell. Since joining Inghams in January 2023, Clare has unified our retail channel into a truly customer-focused team and amplified the voice of the customer right across the organization.
In the most recent Advantage survey report, Inghams was the top-rated poultry supplier as voted on by our retail partners. Whilst this is certainly reflective of an organization that has become more customer-centric, it is also reflective of everything that Clare brings to the table. With a track record of building partnerships and driving commercial outcomes, I have every confidence that Clare will do a wonderful job in leading the sales team forward. More recently, in October, we made further changes to strengthen our Australian operations, moving from a single centralized operational function to three focused and flatter divisions. This shift gives us a sharper accountability, faster decision-making, and strong line of sight from farming through to customer. Susie Klein was appointed Group Executive Agribusiness and Operations Enablement.
With three decades of Inghams' experience and deep operational expertise, Susie now leads the critical bookends of our supply chain, from feed mill and farming through to warehousing and distribution. She also oversees the cross-functional processes that drive operational excellence right across the business. Jacinda Blair was appointed Group Executive Primary Processing and Ingredients. With over 17 years' experience, Jacinda brings a proven combination of operational know-how and commercial acumen as well as people leadership. Her focus is on unlocking productivity in our core business and capturing new value from ingredients and byproduct. Dave West was appointed Group Executive Value Add in Turkey. Dave has more than eight years with Inghams and over 15 years leading operations across FMCG and agriculture. He will lead the expansion of our value-added and convenience portfolio, building products that create distinctive value for customers and consumers alike.
Finally, Adrian Wilson joins the executive leadership team in the role of Group Executive Enterprise Alignment and Corporate Affairs. In this role, Adrian will be responsible for ensuring we're focused and aligned as one enterprise, sharpening how we set priorities, strengthening systems and processes that allow us to deliver. His remit also includes communications and external relations, ensuring that the way we engage, both inside and outside the business, reflects a consistent and compelling Inghams' story. Together, these changes make us flatter, faster, and more connected, with clearer accountability and decisions being made closer to where the action actually happens. It is my belief that these changes to our leadership team structure will result in a more predictable business that can deliver reliable returns to shareholders over time. Moving now to an update on current trading.
I'm pleased to report that market fundamentals have underpinned volume, pricing, and revenue tracking in line or ahead of the outlook that we shared in August. On volumes, we've seen stabilization across the group, with core poultry volumes up 0.8% compared to our FY25 exit run rate. This is particularly encouraging given the Woolworths volume reduction that took effect in FY25. Pleasingly, non-Woolworths retail sales have grown by 16.5%, and we have seen solid growth in QSR, which is up 8.6%. This reflects a business that is not only as competitive as ever but also focused on delivering sustainable growth. Pricing is improving as well, with core poultry net selling prices up 1.5% compared to our FY25 exit run rate. Importantly, our Australian wholesale margins have improved materially, up 39% versus full year 2025. However, we have experienced operational challenges in the first half of financial year 2026.
In our farming operations, we've seen high egg costs due to our decision to reduce volume in late FY25 and below-target feed conversion rates flowing through from late FY25 into the first quarter of this financial year. These issues have impacted our cost base more than anticipated. We've also experienced temporary supply chain inefficiencies in our processing operations due to changes to our customer portfolio last year. Specifically, we've seen lower processing yields, with some material being downgraded to the ingredients channel. We've also reduced turkey production to better match demand, which has seen our unit costs rise. Importantly, we've identified these issues, we've understood the root cause, and we've implemented corrective actions. I'm pleased to say that as a result, our recent operational performance is showing positive improvements, and we expect performance to return to target levels in the second half.
Our broader cost-out program remains on track and is set to deliver between AUD 60 million and AUD 80 million in annualized savings across labor, procurement, and site operations. Feed cost benefits are being realized and are broadly in line with our expectations. Whilst we've certainly faced some near-term headwinds, the underlying market conditions are very positive, and our corrective actions are working. Turning now to an update on outlook and guidance. As you will have seen in our ASX announcement yesterday, we've reaffirmed our FY26 guidance for underlying EBITDA pre-ASB 16 in the range of AUD 215 million-AUD 230 million. That outlook is underpinned by positive market fundamentals. We expect volume to lift slightly, offset by a small price reduction as we share some of the feed cost benefits with our customers. We also expect improving operational stability to drive unit cost efficiency.
In New Zealand, performance remains strong, supported by stable operations, resilient brand performance, and favorable market conditions. We also indicated that for the first half of financial year 2026, underlying EBITDA is expected to be approximately AUD 80 million. As I mentioned earlier, we've seen some operational cost pressures in the first half, and these will impact results before the full benefits of our corrective actions flow through. Those benefits are building and will be more evident in the second half, where we expect a much stronger earnings performance. What is driving this outlook? First, our earnings are weighted to the second half. This reflects the lower financial year 2025 exit run rate and the timing of benefits from our operational reset, which are now progressively coming through. Second, on volumes and pricing, we expect core poultry volumes to be slightly higher than prior year, with net selling prices a little lower.
Importantly, wholesale margins continue to improve, and that provides a very meaningful offset. Third, on costs, excluding feed, we're seeing some inflationary pressures and the short-term effects of operational challenges we identified earlier in the year. These are being materially offset by our AUD 60 million-AUD 80 million cost-out program across labor, procurement, and site operations. Feed costs, meanwhile, are expected to continue to provide a modest tailwind in the second half. Finally, on capital expenditure, we've revised our guidance to between AUD 70 million and AUD 90 million, maintaining disciplined capital allocation whilst investing in the areas that matter most to our long-term growth. To summarize, we've reaffirmed our full-year guidance. The first half has certainly had its challenges, but our corrective actions are delivering and our cost-out program is on track, and the business is positioned for a stronger second half and a solid full-year outlook.
All this sets us up very well as we look ahead to FY27 and beyond. Thank you once again for joining us today, and I'll now hand back to Helen to conduct the formal business of the meeting.
Thank you, Ed. I'll now move to the formal items of business. The notice of meeting was lodged with the ASX on the 10th of October and is available. I propose the notice of meeting be taken as read. Each resolution set out in the notice of meeting is to be considered as an ordinary resolution and to be approved by a simple majority of votes cast by shareholders entitled to vote. For all items of business and in accordance with any voting exclusions that apply to each resolution, undirected proxies that have been given to the Chair or my fellow directors will be voted in favor of these items. The results of today's meeting will be released to the ASX and published on the Inghams Group Limited website in the Investor Centre later today.
The first item of business is to receive and consider the financial report of the company and its controlled entities and the reports of the directors and auditor for the year ended 28th of June 2025. The annual financial report, directors' report, and auditor's report are contained in the company's 2025 annual report, which was released to the market on the 10th of October. As I noted earlier, KPMG partner Trent Duval is here with us today and available to respond to questions relevant to the conduct of the audit and the preparation of the content of the independent auditor's report and the independence declaration. This item of business is for discussion only. The Corporations Act directing there is no formal vote required. I'll now take questions on this item of business, starting with questions in the room. Are there any questions on this item?
Hello, Chair.
Hello, Alan. Welcome.
How are you?
Good, thank you.
Look, the first question is, I'm sorry, I'm representing the ASA. I've got proxies for, I think, only about 33 of the shareholders. Has there been any discussion with potential purchasers?
I think that you will have noted that we released an ASX announcement a couple of weeks ago now stating no.
Okay, and so that is, the answer is no. Fine. The CEO said in the results, the update yesterday and also today, the market fundamentals have developed favorably over the first 18 weeks with stable demand in volume in Australia, and this is great. Non-Woolworths retail is up 15.5% and QSR 8.6%, which is all fantastic. However, with all that, your volume are still down 1.1% over the prior year, the same period last year, which I thought was still a good period. I thought we were talking about the bad period being those last 18 weeks. Even if we look at those last 18 weeks, you're only up 0.8% over that disastrous time. How is this really indicating a recovery or just a slightly worse result than last year, really, is what you're projecting? I don't quite understand that.
Ed, I can see you nodding. I can tell you'd like to answer that. Yeah, please go ahead. Yeah, it should be. Yeah.
I think, I mean, look, firstly, from a growth perspective, it's worth reminding that in the first quarter of this year, we're lapping full Woolworths business. And so whilst we did talk about total volumes being down 1.8%, I think the non-Woolworths business is up significantly, which, as I said in my speech, is reflective, I think, that we've done a very successful job in winning new business to offset the impacts of the Woolworths contract adjustment. In terms of then, as I think, I think then these things are all connected. What we said is in the final quarter of financial year 2025, oversupply led to a significant deterioration of wholesale pricing economics, wholesale pricing. What we've done in the first quarter of this financial year is then a slight reduction in our processing numbers to ultimately tighten up the market.
That is then why we are talking about a marginal increase in volume on the FY25 run rate. We talked about a 40% increase in wholesale margins through that period as well. You would not get that 40% increase in wholesale margins unless we had materially tightened our volume position.
Okay, great. You talked today and previously about AUD 60 million-AUD 80 million annualized costs coming out of the business. AUD 8 million-AUD 10 million comes out from this new structure. By the way, that AUD 60 million-AUD 80 million, I assume that there's also some one-off redundancy costs that will come out of that. How much of that has been achieved so far?
Look, the 60-80 million, so that does include partly the restructure. It also includes things such as procurement, some of the benefits from our capital program, and then our ongoing continuous improvement programs. As we said, the restructure itself was 8-10 million of annualized benefit. In terms of then, there is probably 4 million or so of redundancy costs that will end up hitting this financial year.
Right. Okay. That other, what, the other 50-70 million is basically from inefficiencies that are there that are going to be improved or? I'm just trying to understand because you also are saying your operational costs are higher this year than you anticipated because you have an increase in soybean costs and things like that. I think you have to assume that soybean particularly is going to stay up there. It's not going to fall, even though China is starting to take some, perhaps, but still. I'm just trying to figure out where this money is coming from, the savings. I think it's fantastic you're doing it, but I'm trying to understand where.
I probably think about costs in three lumps. Like I say, there's certainly feed, which in many respects, macroeconomics determines what the feed cost is going to be. That's not included in the AUD 60-80 million that we've identified. I think the AUD 60-80 million more is continuous improvement in terms of programs that just drive continual efficiencies in how we work and the processes that ultimately are required to deliver great product at the end of the day. Then, as we said, there's certainly inefficiencies that have been in our supply chain in the first quarter of this financial year that we're addressing. The addressing or the delta between our current performance and where we expect to be in the second half isn't included in the AUD 60-80 million cost-out program.
Great. Thank you very much.
Thanks, Alan.
Just clarifying, are there any questions for our auditor? No?
To the auditor, has any of your upper staff, higher staff, worked for PWC during the illegalities that PWC engaged in several years ago? As I'm a newish shareholder, it may have been asked before, but if it hasn't, you can tell us now.
There's definitely no one in our team that has worked at PWC from time to time. There is definitely no one in our team that has worked for PWC.
Thank you. We'll just get you a mic. Yeah. Thank you.
Thanks so much.
Yep.
Sorry, sir. There is definitely no one from our team that has worked for PWC. From time to time, the firm across the 10,000-odd staff of KPMG, we do recruit from other firms. So I can't tell you if there are individuals who's been recruited where. There is no one from the executive leadership of PWC at KPMG.
It goes to trustworthiness of the audit.
Yeah. I think I covered that. There's no one in the audit practice, no one in the audit team from PWC.
Hopefully, no lessons, I mean, hopefully, lessons have been learned.
Thank you. Yes, Peter.
Good morning. David Kingston, K Capital.
Sorry, Dave.
I've just got a couple of comments and a couple of questions. Look, Inghams is an iconic company. It's been around for a long time. High quality in core poultry business. Look, it's great that you've been very frank today, both the Chair and the CEO. You've acknowledged the disappointment of the earnings downgrade, and you've acknowledged the poor share price performance. It's not just the fall from AUD 3.80 six months ago to AUD 2.40 today or yesterday, which is a loss of AUD 500 million of market cap. I tend to look long-term to get a guide on companies. It is concerning that the Inghams IPO price in 2016 was AUD 3.15, and here it is today, nine years later, significantly lower. In assessing an investment, is this a great investment opportunity given the fall, or is it a value trap?
I tend to look at what's gone wrong, and are you dealing with those issues? I appreciate the frankness and the honesty today. I think, sorry? Okay. I think it's good to have a frank discussion today. Look, a couple of key issues are clearly Baiada and Woolworths. Baiada continues to gain market share as well as Hazeldene's. Most industry observers comment that Baiada is more aggressive and more commercial than Inghams. Clearly, Baiada has taken part of the Woolworths' business. I accept it's got the advantage of being private and nimble. You've got the constraints of being public and with governance issues and whatever. It is a concern that Baiada is also going to open a new state-of-the-art processing plant in Tamworth in early 2016, processing a massive 3 million chickens a week.
Now, I'm not sure whether that's been taken into account in your assessment of future earnings. Clearly, the partial loss of volumes on Woolworths, replaced by QSR and others, is having a big impact because the volumes might have been largely replaced, but the margins have gone down. In 2025, there was a 9.2% drop in Inghams wholesale margins. Look, the other big issue, I think, in trying to work out objectively why this great company has declined and hopefully it can return. The other big issue, to be frank, is the legacy of TPG. Look, private equity is smart. They're very capable. They make money. Following the purchase by Inghams in 2013 by TPG private equity, they made a terrible mistake, in my view, of selling the major Inghams properties, processing properties.
That's left you with a legacy that your lease costs are now heavy at AUD 166 million a year, majority being principal, part interest. It's a classic PE strategy to strip properties out. Might work for the PE people, but it leaves a legacy. Now the irony is you're starting to buy back some of those properties they sold. Now, look, I welcome that because I think those properties are core properties, processing plants. I think you're doing the right thing to buy them back. I accept in assessing how you're going that TPG have left you with some tough legacies that are not your fault. That's private equity. Unfortunately, the TPG property sales means that your NTA has dropped because they pulled a lot of money out through dividends.
Your NTA has dropped now to a modest AUD 215 million relative to your market cap of around about AUD 900 million. Also, you've got significant debt of AUD 530 million. With reduced earnings, there's limited debt headroom. Coming to a couple of questions, Chair. Appreciate the frankness today, but while Inghams has paid solid dividends, the total shareholder return, which is the critical issue for shareholders, has been weak, both over the short term and the long term. Dividends, good, but the equity value has gone down. First question, how can you deal with this ongoing erosion of market share that keeps on putting pressure on Inghams from Baiada and Hazeldene's continuing to take market share and continuing as nimble private companies to invest in state-of-the-art facilities, which is putting a lot of pressure on Inghams? My second question, just to give you both at the same time.
Look, I do have some concerns about the key financial metrics. Market cap AUD 890 million, debt over AUD 530 million, NTA AUD 215 million. Gearing, according to some brokers, may go above two times EBITDA, which is the top end of your range, a target range. The question is, with margins tightening, and I do not see that changing given the competition, are you concerned about the debt level and the lowish NTA? Why does also, why does Inghams, do you think, trade? I know you are going to say you cannot control the share market, but why does Inghams trade at a 20%-30% discount to relevant international peers? Thank you.
Gosh, that's an incredibly well-considered set of questions, David. Thank you. And you've obviously read our results and our report intimately. Let me try and tackle a couple of things, and then I may ask Gary, put Gary on notice to give a perspective on our financials as well. I think you've acknowledged that we've been very frank about the performance of where the business is at today. I do want to reiterate that we are very dissatisfied with where our current share price is. How do you deal with erosion of market share, to your first question? You have to have a strategy that ultimately grows your share over your medium to long term. That is what our team are working on now. It is premature for me to unveil what they're working on.
What you have seen from Ed is a refreshment of the executive leadership team in this business that we are pretty excited about. That team are head down at the moment refreshing the strategy for Inghams and are looking very acutely at those challenges that you have raised and how we can win against the competition. The plan for that is not to discuss that today. It is premature. The plan is to share that with investors in the second half of this calendar year when that has been finalized. Turning to the financials, are we concerned about our financials? Of course we are, and we are acutely focused on them. We do believe that they are managed very well. As Ed has already talked about, we are expecting, we are already seeing a tick up in some very important operational and financial measures across the business.
We expect those to strengthen in the second half and beyond. I will just see if Gary would like to make any additional comments on debt. Gary? We might get Gary a microphone, ACE, if we could. Thank you.
Good morning. Try not to trip over.
Yeah, don't trip over again.
That's exactly right. In the NTA position, I think you rightly talk about the major impact of that being the property sales from nine, ten years ago. As far as debt, the AUD 530 million net debt is AUD 430 million under that scenario. There is cash that sits in there. We do see our upper limits of leverage, so our guidelines of one to two, and I think they will be breached at the half year. It will be higher at the half year, largely through the prediction of earnings, but also some significant multi-year CapEx that has already been committed coming through. I think we will be higher than our debt leverage range at the half. Expect that to return back to around the top of the range at the full year under that.
Significant headroom sits above our determined range as to where our covenant sits, and that we have plenty of liquidity in our commitments as well. I think your observations are fair, and we need to improve the financial performance in the year, and that will bring those levels back into line.
Thanks, Gary. Okay, there's a question. Yes? The lady on the right, please, Ace, with the microphone.
Thank you.
Yeah, please do introduce yourself.
Yes. My name is Vanny. Very simple question. I have been shopping at Woolworths, and I would say that I'm going through the 13 pages of your product, okay? They are more for very large ones, like maybe 1 kilogram, 2 kilograms products. You do not have too many things that are, let's say, I would like sausages. I would like cold cuts. I think the structure has changed. I do see in Woolworths, you have chickens marinated in different flavors these days, but the weather is hot. I'm not going to open an oven to cook a chicken, okay? I want something that's simple to cook. You have something like skewers on the chickens, but skewers is more like you just put in some marinade and put the chicken through the rods, like the skewers. You do not have the higher-up processing like sausages, okay?
If you look at the Woolworths, there are different types of sausages that have different, let's say, with goat cheese or maybe with wine, like different flavors. These are easier to cook and not that easy for us housewives to do it, to reproduce it for us. Skewers is just meat marinated in different sauces. We can do it very easily, but not sausages, okay? Cold cuts will be very handy in the hot summer. There are two things I think have changed. First, the family structure is getting smaller. We're not living in a big house with a big fridge whereby I can tuck in one or two kilos of stuff in there. I'm living in a smaller apartment these days, maybe a smaller family. Something like 400-500 grams is better.
Secondly, you have a lot of, as I go through the pages, lots of crispy stuff like tenders, schnitzel that have breadcrumbs. Look, it is healthy eating these days. I do not want to have all this stuff that I have to put in either deep fried or either I put in an oven or air fryer. It does not go these days. If I go for chicken, I want white meat. I want something that is more pertaining to be on a diet, not so heavy deep frying stuff. First is the family structure getting smaller. We are moving into apartments. Second, make it easier to cook, more flavorful. Third, it is hot. The weather is getting hotter. Do not expect us to open an oven and bake a whole chicken or a bigger turkey. It sort of does not make sense. Thank you very much.
Okay, thank you. Thank you. I can see Caroline. I'm taking notes there as our Chief Growth Officer. Yes, the gentleman at the back. Thank you.
Simon, Demeric, a minor, minor, minor shareholder. But my simple question is, Woolworths has been on or off? I'm not quite sure. What's the current situation? Do Woolworths buy from Inghams? And if so, roughly what percentage do we believe that they are buying from us?
Yep. Okay. We still supply the majority of Woolworths chicken to them. They are an incredibly valued and important customer. We have just renewed, as you know, we have got a new contract with them. It is a multi-year contract. We are working really constructively with them on joint partnership opportunities. Yes, we still supply them. We are still their biggest supplier. We just supply slightly less than we did before.
I suppose the obvious then question is, what have you learned from your previous discussions with Woolworths? You've been with them for a long time. They dropped you, obviously, for a certain extent. What lessons were learned from that?
Do you know what? I'm going to ask Clare to comment because Clare has been intimately involved with working with Woolworths for a period of time now and deserves a lot of credit for the recent joint business partnership. So Clare, would you like to just add a little bit of color as to what we've learned through the Woolworths process? Thank you.
Great observation. Great question. Just checking you can hear me. Perfect. What have we learned? We have learned that it's really important that we have a relationship that thinks about growth into the future versus a tactical relationship. We have made significant room in terms of building our relationship. As Helen just mentioned, we have actually just agreed a joint business plan with them that stops us just talking about supplying chicken and actually talks to them about creating categories like sausages and various other things with them. We have significantly stepped into our relationship. We have also learned that it's important we have other relationships outside of Woolworths. You can see from the results, our 16% growth in other retail is really the result from the last year or so of us building those relationships. Th ere is plenty more opportunity there that we are going after.
Thank you.
Thanks, Simon. Okay. Oh, Alan, would you like to ask him? Oh, so it's the gentleman in the front row?
Please.
Yep. Please do introduce yourself.
Yeah, good morning, Chair and Board. My name is Wolfgang Schwartz, and I'm a fairly new recent shareholder. So when I saw the price dropping below AUD 2.50, I thought I'd buy some shares and see how the company will be going.
Well, welcome.
One thing is you're producing chickens there, but we have a large Asian population. Have you ever considered producing ducks? Maybe another question is, you're trading in New Zealand and what's called in Australia, naturally. What about our next neighbor, north, Indonesia, with 270 million people? Have you ever considered going out of Australia and New Zealand?
Okay, okay. Let me take the duck question first of all. I mean, I'm sure, Wolfgang, you'd appreciate it. We look at all sorts of growth opportunities, and that does include we look regularly at other proteins. I'm not going to say that duck is on the agenda at the moment, but you would expect us to look at growth opportunities. You're absolutely right about the Asian markets and the appeal of different flavors and delivery mechanisms that we can do for poultry. I would say we focus more on that, looking at the appetite and the appeal and the need states of Lebanese and Asian consumers, but applying that to the poultry market. We do export. It's a relatively small part of our business. At the moment, we're very much focused on Australia and New Zealand. Thank you. Alan, did you have another question?
Yeah, look, it's just following up what a couple of other people have said and what I wanted to ask and was wondering. Last year, sorry, let's part in your results in 2024, you projected an EBIT of AUD 236-250. At your half year, you used the same figures. You ended up at AUD 236.4, right at the bottom. The reason seems to be primarily that you thought you were going to lose less business from Woolworths. You thought that Baiada and Hazeldene's, I'm not sure which one, I know Baiada is doing amazingly at the moment, but I'm not sure which one actually took that business away to a much greater extent than you thought they would. You went and overproduced because you didn't think that was going to happen. Why did they take that business?
Long term is great, fantastic, and that's wonderful, but they cut you off short term. Why?
I might give you a headline comment, and then I'll ask Ed to expand on that. I think we've enjoyed an incredible relationship with Woolworths for a very, very long period of time. If you were to look at their supply, they were very heavily weighted to Inghams, way more than a diversification or a balanced portfolio approach would take. It is simply a customer diversification strategy from their point of view. Now, it is equally important for us, as Clare was saying just a moment ago, to have a balanced and spread portfolio for Inghams across a variety of channels and customers. That is the headline reason, they were far too heavily weighted. From a resilience and a diversification point of view, it made sense for them to do that as it does for us over time.
Ed, would you like to add anything to that?
Yeah, I mean, I think that's exactly the rationale, largely from a Woolworths perspective, was one of wanting to diversify their supply base. In terms of then the adjustment of volumes in the second half, we knew the Woolworths adjustment was coming. We knew 12 to 18 months before that final tranche was adjusted in late February of financial year 2025. What we did, and there's probably a reflective moment for us as an organization, is we held our production settings flat despite the adjustment. The reason for holding our production settings flat is twofold. Firstly, we wanted to hold onto our market share.
I think, as you quite rightly pointed out, we have been losing to Baiada, and there was a sense of putting a stake in the ground to say, "No, we don't want to lose any more market share." The second was a belief that, based on how we'd seen behavior play out in the market prior to that point in time, we thought Baiada would adjust down. The other competitors would adjust down their processing volumes as well. Now, as it happened, I think that led to a significant oversupply in the market in the final quarter, which led to the wholesale pricing that you saw deteriorate the way that it has. We've since seen it come up some 40% again. That is really as it played out. It wasn't so much a short-term shock from Woolworths' perspective.
It was the decisions we subsequently made from a processing volume perspective.
Great. Thank you for that. I assume you've learned from that, and that won't happen again.
We have. Watch this space.
Thank you.
Thanks, Alan. Brett—oh, sorry. Yes, David?
Thank you. Just one follow-up, please. It's really on medium-term outlook. Look, when you look at this business, it's got ongoing heavy CapEx, which is well above depreciation in recent years. Secondly, as we've all talked, you've got heavy competition from fellow suppliers like Baiada, etc. Thirdly, you've got the challenge of dealing with non-generous customers such as Woolworths. Look, they're a fantastic company, but we all know they're not particularly generous, which is fair enough. When we look at FY2025, you've delivered AUD 90 million NPAT on AUD 3.2 billion of revenue. That's an NPAT to revenue margin of sub 3%. You're actually now in the supermarket company territory, whose margins are traditionally fairly low, but you are down at their level. That's the sort of margin that they deliver.
My question really is, is the future that this is a branded business which can get decent margins, or is this business migrating to being a commodity-type business where the competitors are big, the customers are tough? Do you see that it is a branded business? It's got some brands, but are they becoming a little bit meaningless? Is this becoming a commodity-type industry, which necessarily, if it is, unfortunately, the margins are going to migrate lower? Thank you.
Yep. No, it's a great question, David. I'm going to get dangerously close to talking about future strategy, which I'm just not going to do. I think there is a role for both. We have to play in core poultry, and we have to be competitive. I think Ed's talked about how we're making significant efficiency and operational improvements in that area, and they're in play. We need to do a better job there. There's also a role for branded and for value-add and for things that our competitors cannot do. We believe that that's a real strength of ours and a particular strength of the team assembled now around Ed. A role for both, but definitely a role for driving a growth agenda in the future. Brett, are there any questions on the line?
Jay, there are no questions on the line or on the phones.
Okay. I am now going to move to the resolutions. Item two concerns the re-election of Rob Gordon as a Non-Executive Director of the company. Rob was first appointed as a Non-Executive Director on the 11th of April, 2019, and was last elected by shareholders on the 8th of November, 2022. Rob is currently a member of the Finance and Audit Committee and a member of the Nomination Committee. Rob has nearly 40 years' experience in fast-moving consumer goods and agribusiness sectors and was most recently the Chief Executive Officer and Director of Rice Growers Limited. The board has reviewed Rob's performance and believes he continues to provide a very valuable contribution to the board and accordingly unanimously supports his re-election. I'd now like to invite Rob to say a few words in support of his re-election. Rob.
Thank you very much, Chair. Good morning, everyone. My name is Rob Gordon, and I have had the privilege of being an NED of the Inghams business for two terms. Today, I'm seeking your support for a third term. The majority of my experience comes from the 40 years I spent in executive roles in the international food industry. I would like to share a few highlights of my background, which I consider may be relevant to the current trading situation at Inghams.
I'm actually originally an automation and supply chain specialist, believe it or not, graduating in the U.K. with an honors degree in electrical and electronic engineering and joining Unilever's engineering management training program before taking a number of supply chain roles, including systems engineer, factory chief engineer, and at the age of 26, being appointed factory manager and going on to run the largest tea factory in Europe. I then spent time in Unilever's corporate center, modeling the network and supply chain implications of the introduction of the single European common market. At 31, I was expatriated to Australia to take on the role of Technical Director for Streets Ice Cream and managed the launch of Magnum Ice Cream here and in New Zealand, despite local management believing that consumers wouldn't pay for real chocolate on an ice cream. This comes back to the previous point.
Consumers flocked to pay a premium for a differentiated branded product. After leaving Unilever to join Goodman Fielder to run their commercial oils business, a number of other roles followed, including Marketing and Strategy Director for Goodman Fielder Baking, Managing Director of Medalee Foods, and finally, Managing Director of Goodman Fielder Consumer Foods, which included at the time Uncle Toby's, Medalee, Patak's, and White Wings, to name but some of the brands. I then spent four years as CEO of Dairy Farmers, turning around a poorly performing co-op and eventually selling it to Kirin at a close to 13 multiple, and starting the rationalization of the Australian dairy industry.
A brief couple of years as president of Southeast Asia for the grain accumulator and trader Viterra, before taking on the role of CEO for Sunrise, which had just emerged from the millennium drought, heavily in debt and narrowly avoiding being taken over by a Spanish rice company. The business was completely restructured over my 12 years in the role. Debt was reduced significantly, and now around two-thirds of sales are from international markets, including from a mill I opened in Vietnam, supply sourced from China and South America. The domestic brand was also relaunched and extended. In 2019, I listed the business on the ASX, and the share price, which was at AUD 2.05 when I joined, recently peaked north of AUD 18.
At a previous AGM of Inghams, I was asked how I could possibly be the CEO of a business like Sunrise and make a meaningful contribution to Inghams. I had the energy to do both professional standards of both companies, but now I have retired from my executive positions and have kept my NED involvement focused purely on Inghams. I'm very encouraged by the recent transformative moves made by a new and highly capable CEO, Ed Alexander. I believe there are many parallels between my background and the challenges facing Ed and his rejuvenated team. I stand ready to share experiences and advice when needed. There is a very collaborative and transparent culture around our board table, fostered by our Chair, Helen, and focused on bringing the correct solution even when tough decisions are needed.
In anticipation, I'd like to thank you for your support for this third term. Thank you.
Thank you, Rob. I'll now take questions on this item. Are there any questions about Rob's re-election? None, Rob. Brett, are there any questions on the line?
Chair, there are no questions on the line either.
Okay. Thank you, Brett. Moving to the proxy results. Wow. Look at that, Rob. I will briefly pause if there is anyone in the room that hasn't cast their vote. Okay. Moving to item number three. Item three concerns the re-election of Tim Longstaff as a Non-Executive Director of the company. Tim was appointed as a Non-Executive Director on the 20th of January, 2022, and was elected by shareholders on the 8th of November, 2022. Tim is currently the Chair of the People and Remuneration Committee, a member of the Finance and Audit Committee, and a member of the Nomination Committee. Tim's professional background as a chartered accountant encompasses a 25-year career in investment banking and senior executive roles, as well as serving as a senior advisor to a senior federal cabinet minister. He now has a broad range of experience as an NED of large ASX-listed companies.
The board has reviewed Tim's performance and believes he continues to provide a very valuable contribution to the board and accordingly unanimously supports his re-election. I would now like to invite Tim to say a few words in support of his re-election.
With thanks, Helen, and good morning, fellow shareholders. As Helen said, my name's Tim Longstaff. I've been an Inghams director now since 2022, and I'm seeking your re-election for a second term, confident in the company's fundamentals, its strong team, and the contribution I make. Helen has covered, and you've seen my background. I'm a chartered accountant, most of my career in investment banking, with some time at the most senior levels of government, and I'm now a full-time non-executive director on the boards of four large ASX-listed companies. I want to explain why Inghams is important to me. Over 8,000 Inghams team members show up every day to make Inghams' purpose real, to deliver deliciously good food in the best way. Chicken is Australia's favorite protein.
Over two or three nights a week, most families have chicken for dinner purchased from one of the many supermarket chains that Inghams supplies. When we're heading out for a picnic, we grab a barbecue bird. When we're on the run, we get some nuggets or a burger from a fast food, quick-service restaurant like McDonald's or KFC that Inghams supplies. To do these things, Inghams needs to be financially successful and commercially viable. We need to create real shareholder value. After delivering, as was covered earlier, successive record EBITDA results between 2024 and 2025, we must acknowledge that recent performance has been poor. Inghams has been facing into strategic challenges.
I acknowledge the shareholder disappointment in the share price and rest assured that the board and management team are focused with discipline and urgency on making the decisions necessary to reposition Inghams and create durable, meaningful shareholder performance. That is my focus as a former investment banker and accountant, is creating durable, meaningful shareholder performance. My skills on the board are in three primary areas. Firstly, as a chartered accountant of over 30 years' standing, which comes in quite surprisingly useful chairing the Rem Committee, but also working with Mike on the Audit Committee. Secondly, in strategy, contributing to a strategy that will create this shareholder value and bring equity market insights to do so. Thirdly, the investment banking skills around capital structure, equity market engagement, and M&A that may well be needed as Inghams develops its new path to the future.
My background has enabled me to offer valuable insights to support and, where needed, constructively challenge to help our team move forward. In closing, I really look forward to partnering with my effective and collegiate Board colleagues, very ably led by Helen, Ed as he develops his new strategic vision, and his first-class and rejuvenated management team to continue the shareholder value creation journey. I would be delighted to have your support to continue to do so. Thank you.
Thank you, Tim. Are there any questions in the room about Tim's re-election? David.
Thank you. Look, Tim's got an excellent CV, and so I can make an outstanding contribution to the company. Just a quick question, Tim. Notwithstanding your high-quality CV and your hard work over your three years on the board, shareholder value has gone down. Would you perhaps comment on what you think has caused that and why you're confident that this company will turn around the underperforming share price? Thank you.
Microphone on? Hello? Hello? Yeah? Last guy on the end. Thank you. Are we good? Good to go? Good to go?
All come here.
Hello?
Brett's going to bring you a handheld. There you go.
Thanks, David. All.
You don't want to hear from him.
Even that's not working. Look, thanks, David. Very fair questions. My time on the board began in the depths of COVID, and third time, lucky. Thanks, David. My time on the board began in the depths of COVID, and we had struggled to get out of that. I think the challenges that have caused the recent share price decline are really around Woolworths and the recalibration of the business and its strategy to deal with that. What I suppose in the classic phrase, never waste a crisis. What Ed has been leading is a process to really confront the longer-term strategic challenges of the organization and to build something that is durable. Yeah.
With some reluctance, you say this, but in a sense, the loss of the Woolworths volume has provided us with the license to make more long-term strategic, perhaps more courageous change than just, in a sense, trying to achieve a smaller, more modest change to achieve a growth in earnings. What we have on the board, what Ed's driving, and what the board as a whole is supporting is a real focus on how do we make Inghams to be the strongest and best company we can in 2030, not necessarily how do we deliver share guidance for next year. Thanks.
Thanks, Tim. Brett, are there any questions on the line about Tim's re-election?
Chair, there are no questions on the line.
Oh, sorry. We do have another question in the room from Wolfgang. Go ahead, Wolfgang.
Yeah. As you said, you have four other directorships in four large ASX-listed companies. First of all, what are these four companies? Do you really have enough time and energy to devote to this Inghams business?
Thanks, Wolfgang. See if we're in the same position as everyone. This is more a chicken company and not a tech company. As Mike says, Glabber, a chicken company and not a tech company. Wolfgang, a completely fair question. Let me say my three other boards are the Nine Entertainment Group, which is the television and media entity that owns the television station and the Financial Review and the Sydney Morning Herald and things. I'm on the board of Parenti, a mining services company. And I'm on the board of a large transport and logistics company called Aurizon. So they're the plus Inghams is the four boards. Yeah, what I find is that each of those boards enables me to bring really different perspectives, whether it's about industrial relations, whether it's about performance efficiency, whether it's about adopting AI.
Each of these companies has got its own approach, and it's incredibly valuable to have the wealth of experience on the board, colleagues who sit on other boards, to bring those different perspectives of how other companies are thinking about changing things. To give you a really real example, it's fascinating to bring the insights from the Nine board, engaging as we do with most of the consumer-leading companies in Australia and engaging with the consumer sector, and bring those broader perspectives to bear at Nine. As you would see, Wolfgang, if you look, I have a 100% attendance record at board and committees across all of those four boards. Really, this is my—I'm happy to say that in non-executive director terms, I'm a young director. This is not a transition to retirement for me. This is a full-time, five-day-a-week role that I throw myself into.
As a technical point, which you should not rely on, I am well within the proxy advisor guidelines for not being overboarded. The test is, do I contribute and do I throw myself in? The answer is yes. Not just the bare minimum, but Helen thoughtfully gives me some special projects from time to time, and I work on colleagues with special projects, and I find time for those as well. It is about the journey of creating shareholder value for Inghams shareholders, and that is what I am engaged in. Sorry, I had a name because I got shares in my own for many, many years.
Yeah. I'll just add to that. I mean, Tim is always available and deeply engaged in this business. He's already said he doesn't miss a meeting. Inghams is incredibly well served by all of our directors. This is a very engaged and committed board. We are lucky to have each and every one of them. Brett, are there any other questions on the line?
Chair, there are no questions on the line for this item.
Okay. We are going to move to the proxy results, and I'll just give you a few more seconds to cast your vote if you haven't yet done so. I will now move to—gosh, 98.8. I think Rob has just pinned you to. So close and yet so far. Item four. Item four. Now, we're going to move on and talk about the remuneration report. For the year ended the 28th of June, 2025. The remuneration report is contained on pages 50 to 73 of the annual report. It sets out the remuneration policies of the company and reports on the remuneration arrangements in place for the company's KMP during the 2025 financial year.
We are committed to ensuring that our remuneration strategy reflects good governance in consultation with key stakeholders, is transparent in its design, and supports the business strategy to drive sustainable outperformance for shareholders over the short, medium, and long term. In the lead-up to this year's AGM, I met with several stakeholders along with Tim to discuss the company's current remuneration plans and update ourselves on key issues for investors. We find these meetings really informative and very valuable, and they do provide input into the board's decisions regarding executive remuneration. While the vote on the remuneration report is a non-binding one, it remains a valuable source of feedback. The board takes the discussions held during this part of the meeting and the outcome of the vote into account when setting remuneration policy for future years. I will now take questions on this item, starting with questions in the room.
Are there any questions? Alan.
Thank you. Thank you for the meeting with both of you before the remuneration. I don't think I've ever heard a Chair talk so much about remuneration in her opening speech, and I thought it was very good. One of the things that happened this year, and I think was mentioned, is that you use your discretion to reduce the short-term incentive, particularly for the CEO. My question—I have two questions. My first one is that shouldn't have been necessary. I want to know if it's going to be necessary again this coming year. The reason for that is the minimum in your—as you said, in your long-term incentive, your return on investment capital has been reduced because of the outlook, because of the expenditures, the capital expenditures.
What I want to know is, are we going to have the same situation next year that has to look at, "Well, we said 215-230, and we made our minimum so low that basically, are we going to see a more realistic minimum in your short-term incentive this year?" is my first question.
I'm going to take that, and then I'll check to see whether my colleague would like to build on that. I think discretion was warranted, Alan, because we, on the whole, hit the bottom end of the guidance that we took. On the face of it, we looked at a scorecard that vested. I think I did cover this in my opening address. We had to take a step back from that and actually look at the bigger picture, which said, "Yes, it did vest. It vested right at the bottom of the range.
The ESG measures on the whole were very solid. When you take a step back and you look at the loss of volume with the renewal of the Woolworths contract, and importantly, what we're living through now, the outlook at that point in time, which was out of FY25 into FY26, the outlook in the short term being more challenged than was ideal. That was really the reason why we needed to take a step back and say, "We can't just look at the vesting of the financials. We need to look at the bigger picture and the outlook into the future 6 and 12 months of the business." Tim, would you like to add anything to that?
Helen, I'd agree with that, of course. I think to your question, Alan, we shouldn't have to use discretion. You know what? Sometimes we have to. We set targets to find the right degree of balance between a realistic target because if it's not achievable, it's of no value to the executives and doesn't motivate them. Yet at the same time, they need to be challenged and stretched. That is how we set these targets. With a continuing executive team, then you can allow for unders and overs in future periods. With an exiting Chief Executive and where the impact of the key event that drove our targets being the transition of Woolworths volumes, the question when we set the FY25 targets was we didn't know what the effect would be. We had some ambitious targets that the team needed to achieve.
We did not know how it would evolve. When we saw it evolve, we saw that FY25 did not fully capture the impact of the loss of Woolworths. Yet Andrew was leaving as an executive. At that point, we had to make a decision of how we captured the totality of that substantial decision that happened on Andrew's watch. It was appropriate, as Helen said, to make the adjustment. We set our structures so we do not have to adjust them. When they have to be adjusted because it is the right thing to do, they have to be adjusted. I must say that the decision the board made has got very widespread shareholder proxy support.
Good. Thank you. My other question, I know you think it's surprising coming from me. I understand we have a new CEO, and we have great hopes for him. He doesn't have the experience the previous CEO has, and therefore, the fixed annual remuneration was reduced. That makes sense. What I can't understand is why his incentives were reduced. I mean, yeah, reduce his fix, but his incentives should have been at least as high as his predecessor was because you want him to shoot the lights up. You want him to aim high, as you were talking about. Why did you reduce his incentives?
It's, again.
[Crosstalk]
I knew you were going to ask this question. I'm sure Ed's thinking, "Yes." Go on, Alan. Go on, Alan. Ask that question. I think I'll make a couple of comments. If Tim would like to embellish. You've picked up, first of all, on the fact that, of course, Ed did a fantastic job in New Zealand as CEO of New Zealand. This is his first group CEO role of an ASX-listed company. He is growing into that role. He is already making great strides in building a great team around him and refreshing our strategy. He will grow in that role. It's appropriate that the benchmarking is reviewed and is different to, for example, a retiring CEO who's been in the game for a very long period of time.
We expect Ed's remuneration, with his performance obviously being at an acceptable level and hopefully at an outstanding level, for his remuneration to move over time. That would include, of course, his fixed rent, but also those stretch areas of STI and LTI. Anything to add, Tim?
Probably only Helen. Yeah, I think shareholders should expect that not only will Ed's TFR and remuneration move, but it will move at a rate higher than the broader workforce. When we benchmarked Andrew, the benchmark for an experienced, qualified CEO was about what Andrew was being paid, about AUD 1.25 million. If you do the maths and say over a period of years that you would expect Ed to get to that level. If we hypothetically increase the wages of the broader workforce at, say, 3% in line with inflation, if Ed was having pay increases of, say, 6%, do not bank it yet, Ed. As he moved towards that benchmark level for an experienced chief executive, subject as Helen said, the performance, I think shareholders should expect to see that. I think they should be grateful for that because Ed will be doing a tremendous job. Thanks.
Thanks, Alan. Oh, yes, David, go ahead.
Yeah. Look, just a couple of things. As the great Charlie Munger used to say, "Show me the incentive and I'll show you the outcome." Look, like Tim, I come from an investment banking background. I think it would fall apart, Tim, if there were not bonuses. I think no one would have any employees. So philosophically, I'm all in favor of incentivizing the key people. It looks like Ed's done a great job in New Zealand. I think your address today was excellent. It was energized and practical. You seem like a very good people person. I'm sure you'll do well. At the end of the day, Chair, the party that's made the most money out of this sector in Inghams is TPG. Now, private equity are incentivized massively. They made a lot of money.
The people who've made the least amount of money are the shareholders from the IPO in TPG. All I would say is that the other people who've made a huge amount of money in this sector are the private, savvy, I'll even use the word mongrels because I think it's fair to say, Baiada, all reports are really tough, ruthless. They're driven by what? Every single dollar of profit goes to the family. I believe Hazeldene's are probably the same. I just like to support attractive remuneration for the key people who make it happen. Also, just a question for Ed. I'm pretty realistic, and I've dealt with a lot of listed companies. The governance is tough. It's only getting tougher. Compliance, there's an element of bureaucracy in being a listed company that is impossible to avoid.
It doesn't matter how effective you are. It's just endemic in listed companies. Ed, are you confident that with the constraints of being Chief Executive of a listed company, that you can outcompete those unfettered, wily, savvy private players who are motivated by the fact that every single dollar of profit goes to their families? Are you confident that the constraints you're under are not going to mean that there's going to be an ongoing period of underperformance relative to the Australian index or just that the share price will actually recover, bearing in mind you've got these pretty sharp competitors? Thank you.
Yeah, sure. Is this working?
Yes, it is.
Thanks for the question and the support of my remuneration. I'd say maybe three points up front. The first is that across the New Zealand market, we also had very competitive private operators who were family-owned and were very hungry for new business. We managed to outcompete them and outcompete them quite significantly. We did that largely through two focus areas. One was how do you get more exposure to areas that are growing within the market, and how do you make sure that you're capturing portfolio growth? The other is how do you invest behind distinctive capabilities such as the acquisition of Bostock Brothers that provides you with relative pricing power within that market? I think as a result, as Helen talked to you up front, that's seen Inghams' New Zealand earnings double over that sort of period of time from 2022 to 2024.
That's point number one. Point number two is I think there's still an awful lot more that we can do as an organization to make ourselves less bureaucratic and more efficient. It started with the changes to the operating model, which was taking layers out of the business. I think there's quite frankly more to do there in terms of how we do reduce the bureaucracy and ultimately reduce the friction as it relates to working with Inghams. Finally, I think how you do compete. I've got a framework in my mind, which is intrinsic value is created through three areas. It's play where the growth is, invest behind distinctiveness, and ultimately think about how you increase barriers to exit over time. I think once you apply that model, there is certainly a way in which you outcompete competitors within the market.
It's just up to us as a management team to make sure that we go after that.
Thank you. Thanks, David. Brett, are there any questions on the line?
Chair, we have a question from Mr. Stephen Maine. His question is as follows. Which of the proxy advisors covered us this year and did any recommender vote against today's resolutions, including this remuneration report item? If so, what reasons did they give, and did this translate into any material protest votes? Stephen also notes it is standard for companies to be across this detail on the voting recommendations and inform shareholders where relevant. He also asks, "Next year, please disclose the proxies earlier to the ASX along with the formal business addresses to avoid having to ask questions like this and allow for a more fully informed debate.
Okay. Noted on the request. Tim and I met with all of the proxies, and all of them are in favor of all of the resolutions. Tim, that's correct, isn't it? Yep. Brett, are there any more questions on the line?
There are no further questions, Chair, for this item.
Okay. Okay. The proxy results are shown on the screen with a very good result. I will pause briefly just in case you haven't cast your vote. I will now move to item five. This is about the company's LTIP for 2026 to 2028, which is the grant to the CEO MD. The company's LTIP schemes are designed to align the interests of the CEO and Managing Director with the interests of shareholders by providing the opportunity to receive an equity interest in the company through the granting of performance rights. Each performance right entitles the CEO to receive one fully paid ordinary share in the company subject to meeting specified performance conditions. The FY26 to 2028 LTIP structure remains unchanged from the prior year and is based on two equally weighted performance measures of underlying pre-ASB 16 return on invested capital and relative total shareholder return.
As I outlined earlier, there is no change to the relative TSR measure, and the level set for the 2026 to 2028 period represents a substantial hurdle if it is to be achieved. In relation to return on invested capital, the FY2026 to 2028 measure has a lower threshold and maximum level than previous years. The levels set by the board reflect both the earnings forecast outlined in our 2026 earnings guidance and an upward trend in capital employed as Inghams invests in the refurbishment, efficiency, and expansion of its productive capacity, as I previously talked about. Importantly, the target levels are meaningfully in excess of Inghams' weighted average cost of capital. I will now take questions on this item, starting with questions in the room. There are no questions here. Brett, are there any questions on this item on the phone line? Brett, are there any?
Chair, there are no questions for this item.
Okay. Thank you. I think we can move to the proxy results, which are now on the screen. I will pause again briefly just in case you have not cast your vote. Okay. Before proceeding to general business, I would like to advise that I will move to close voting at the conclusion of that discussion. If you have not already done so, please complete all of your votes for the resolutions. Moving now into general business. I think we did actually cover a little bit of general business earlier, which is absolutely fine. Shareholders are now invited to ask any other general questions that you might have regarding the company. We did receive several questions prior to the meeting that I would like to address. I will come back to you. I am just going to address a couple of questions that we had up front.
The first question references the fall in our share price, which I have discussed, but I will come back to it, and how we intend on improving it going forward. As I noted earlier in my address, the performance of our share price since late August has been very disappointing. I would like to reiterate my reassurance that the board and the management team are responding with urgency and discipline through a range of measures which are expected to position the company for stronger performance in the second half of this fiscal and beyond. We look forward to updating you on these and their outcomes during the year. The second question relates to whether Inghams has plans to introduce a dividend reinvestment plan in the future. The board and the management team constantly review the capital requirements of the business.
While we do not have any current intention to introduce a dividend reinvestment plan, should we decide that commencing such a plan is in the interest of the company and its capital requirements, we will advise shareholders by way of an ASX announcement at that time. The next question relates to our growth plans for the business. We actively consider growth opportunities in Australia and New Zealand during the course of any given year, as evidenced by the two New Zealand acquisitions we've undertaken more recently. The board and management actively consider external growth opportunities as they arise, whilst remaining focused on driving the performance and growth of the existing business. The final question we received was a general question in relation to our sustainability initiatives. Sustainability is an important contributor to the performance of our business.
With a focus on responsible business practices that align with our strategic direction, we believe that we're performing well in our key sustainability focus areas, and they will create long-term value for shareholders, customers, and communities. Our sustainability reporting, which you can find on our website, is a valuable resource for those who'd like to learn more about how sustainable practices benefit our business. I will now take questions from the room. Please come to the mic.
I'm Michael Strakosz, Abbott Cove Super Fund. For a company that is chicken, I've heard it referred to once, and you glossed over the reduced feed conversion ratio in your comments, and I was wondering what caused it, how we fixed it, and do you expect it to happen again? The second bit, which is a chicken company with a minor bit of turkeys, have you investigated or considered going into other forms of poultry, quail, pheasants, etc., guinea fowl?
Thank you, Michael. I think I asked the duck question earlier, but I will ask Ed to comment on food conversion in a moment because I think you touched on it, but it might be worth just going over the operational challenges again. We do look at all the other proteins, and really, that forms part of our—we do an annual strategic review. We have looked at duck, we have looked at red meat, we have looked at other poultry as well. We still believe that there are significant opportunities in the key markets in which we are currently operating. We would be blind not to make sure that we are looking outside of our core business, and we do that regularly. Ed, do you want to comment about food conversion?
Yeah. Look, my comment on feed conversion—we're an agricultural business at the end of the day, and we go in and out of cycles, quite frankly. Whether that's feed or whether that's efficiency of our farming practice, these are cycles that we go in and out of. I think the beauty about poultry is you get very quick feedback, and so we can make adjustments quite quickly. The relative point here is that across the last four months in particular, there has been a reduction in feed conversion ratio, but we're immediately starting to see improvements as we're working on it today. There is a whole bunch of things that can impact that. It could be weather, quite frankly. It can be slight outbreaks in disease in various farms. It can be poor husbandry in some instances.
There's a whole bunch of factors, but it's our job as management to pick up on those leading indicators as quickly as possible and address them. I'm very comfortable that Susie and the team are doing that as we speak. I do think at the end of the day, it comes back to some of the agricultural realities that we have to deal with.
I forgot the other bit. What precautions does the company take against avian flu?
Okay. Do you want to go?
Yeah. It's a very obviously appropriate and timely question. Look, we've got very strict sort of biosecurity controls that are in place right across our network. I would say that given there's been discussion about our competitors quite a lot today, I think we've got a real advantage relative to biosecurity control, just given that our asset footprint kind of extends across all states of Australia as well as New Zealand. Look, we've got strict biosecurity controls in place, and we continue to monitor it and work in with industry as well.
Thank you.
Thank you, Michael. Brett, are there any questions on the line?
Chair, we have several questions online.
Actually, just hang on because I think David might have another question. David, go ahead.
Thank you, Chair. Just a brief one. Look, we know the earnings are down, and you've got a strategy to fix that. I am a little bit concerned about the capital spend because your net cash flow is clearly significantly negative. Recently, you have bought back a facility that I support, but it's cost you money. Secondly, you've bought a New Zealand business, which I'm sure Ed's on top of, so let's assume that's a winner. Thirdly, you have ongoing large CapEx, which maintenance CapEx and general CapEx, which generally has been above your depreciation rate, which leads to the situation where your debt is 530 but tracking above your target range of two times EBITDA. Question is pretty simple. Can you rule out the possibility of a new equity issue? Thank you.
Again, very well-informed and insightful comments, which I agree with. New Zealand, Bolivar, and large CapEx, this is in part, as you've talked about, the result of TPG and the years of private equity. All of those investments were incredibly well thought through and have strong—the Bostock business, for example, is a growth strategy for us, has strong returns. Bolivar is a strategic asset. It made absolute sense for us to buy that one back. Our CapEx falls into those three areas: ESG, stay in business, and growth. At the moment, we're very comfortable with the plans that we have, that we can manage them. Can we absolutely rule out an equity in the future? I'm not going to say no to anything.
What we need to do is finalize the strategic reset that Ed and the team are working on and then share that when we're ready to do so. That is the plan for the second half of this year, to get an investor day, talk about the future when Ed and the team are ready. In terms of our current plans and our current investments, we're very comfortable with our capital framework as it stands today. Thank you.
Brett, are there any questions on the line? Oh, sorry. We've got another question in the room. Two questions in the room.
Chair, my name's Kevin Lewis. Small things you look at. Big things you can work out. Do we sell fertilizer because we're a chicken group? Do we sell the fertilizer from the chickens? Do we sell fertilizer? Do we sell feathers? What are we doing to increase sales in the wholesale section? The last thing is, because we're getting eggs because we're chickens, do we use the eggs to sell, or do we use the chickens to get chicks? The other thing is, why can't we sell sausages, chicken sausages for Aldi, Woolworths, the other one, Coles, etc.? Also, besides those, do we sell Inghams' chickens to retailers as well? A lot to go through.
Yeah, there's a lot to go through there. There's clearly a lot of demand for chicken sausages, I think.
It is still a yes.
Two of you have spoken to.
We're in the business of chickens.
Yeah. With fertilizer and feathers, we're really getting into the sort of rendering area. Ed, you might want to make a comment on that because they are very important byproducts, and we do use them, and we do sell them. I might get you to make a comment about that.
Can I quickly have a crack through some of those questions? In relation to fertilizer, we have that incorporated into our grower agreements. At the moment, our growers are able to use the fertilizer that the chickens are generating, and there is a value transfer effectively between us as the company.
Effectively. There is value created through the fertilizer. Exactly. As it relates to feather, that's a significant opportunity. We use that into rendering at the moment. I think there are various upsides that we can use that into the future as well. Indeed, what we are looking at at the moment as an organization is how we can just make sure that we maximize the full value that is available from processing the full bird. As it relates to eggs, all of our eggs are used to generate meat chickens at the moment, and certainly in the short term, we have no intention to enter the egg market, which has, as you would have seen, been quite impacted by avian flu. Sausages is on Caroline's top of priority list to make sure that she works out how we get into that bit of the market.
Look, in terms of the wholesale channel, I think it's a really good question that you asked in terms of how can you play a bigger role there. I look at the wholesale market. It's a significant portion of the Australian market now, and you can see the impact that it had on us as an organization at the last quarter. The question for us is how I think we generate stronger partnerships with some of those players within the wholesale market and reduce some of the price volatility that exists there as well.
Wolfgang.
What is happening to the millions or billions of feathers at the moment? What are we doing with them?
They're going through to rendering at the moment. They're being rendered. Yeah.
It's a good question. Susie, why don't you give a crack at rendering? Sorry. Susie Klein.
What is rendering, Susie?
Group Executive for Agribusiness who I introduced earlier.
Morning, everybody. Rendering of the feathers goes into what we'd call feather meal, and the feather meal gets used in fertilizers. It can get used as a feed ingredient in other meat proteins. It is a very valuable source of protein that can be used in a number of different ways.
Do we sell?
Yes, we do. 100% of our feathers go into a rendering, which is then sold.
Thank you, Susie. There's a gentleman on the end.
I've got a very simple question. You mentioned a number of times that you will be resetting the strategy. We, as a shareholder, can we know about the timeline?
Sorry, what was the question? What is the timeline for that?
Yes.
Okay. I think I mentioned earlier the plan is to be able to get an investor day in your diaries in the second half of this fiscal. We're still working on the date for that, so I can't give you a date today, but somewhere between February and June next year. Brett, are there any questions on the line?
Chair, we have several questions for General Business. The first one is from Mr. Stephen Maine. How many full-time equivalent staff do we currently have, and is this likely to fall over the coming 12 months with the rapid rollout of AI? Which parts of our business and operations are the most prospective for AI productivity gains, and how energetically are we embracing those opportunities?
Okay. We have over 8,000 employees at Inghams. We have over 800 FTE salaried. I'm looking at it to check that my numbers are correct. We have no plans to radically change that. AI is being incredibly well embraced across the organization. We've got Andrew Locke, our CIO, with us today. There he is in the front. Not only are our employees embracing AI, but the board is embracing AI, and we're seeing lots of exciting business initiatives being driven through Claude in particular across the organization. We see it as a very important and exciting part of our future.
Chair, the next question from Mr. Maine again is as follows. Coles and Woolworths have been under pressure from shareholder resolutions at their past two AGMs over the labeling and salmon farming practices of some of their salmon suppliers in Tasmania. Are we feeling the heat at all from activist groups over our chicken farming practices, and have we noticed that Coles and Woolworths are making more demands for reform from major meat suppliers like us as they come under direct pressure from the ESG movement? What are the biggest ESG reforms we've made since becoming a public company?
Gosh, that's a big question. In short, we're not seeing any activism at Inghams. We're incredibly proud of our animal welfare credentials. You would know, I'm sure, that Australia is 100% RSPCA. New Zealand is 100% SPCA. We have incredibly high levels of animal welfare. We take it very seriously. We're always looking to improve. Some of the key areas of our ESG agenda, I've touched on those two. We're audited many times throughout the year. We've achieved an average AA rating under the BRCGS across all of our sites, which is really outstanding and a credit to our Inghams team. I think I mentioned earlier that New Zealand is now 100% renewable electricity. We have our Marion Bay carbon-neutral chicken coming out of Tasmania, and we continue to improve significantly in the area of packaging and water.
We beat our target of having over 50% of our packaging renewable. We're ahead of target. We aim to get that up into the very high 80% over the next few years. We continue to focus on really reducing our water footprint and consumption. We reduced that by 2.7% in the last year. Those would be some of the important highlights. I should just touch on safety again. Our safety record is exemplary, and we've reduced that significantly, I think, by 57% over the last four years.
Chair, Stephen asked another question. On the Australian operation, how many enterprise agreements with unions does our company have across the business? JB Hi-Fi and Domino's both said at recent AGMs that they pay award wages, have no enterprise agreements, and virtually non-existent union membership amongst its workforce. Is our situation the same, or are we closer to the likes of Qantas and Baiada, which are juggling more than 50 enterprise agreements across their operations?
Again, it's a big question. Luckily, we have our Chief People Officer in the room. Grant, walk up to the microphone. We definitely have more than a few EBAs. Do you know the number off the top of your head, Grant?
Yes, I do.
I thought you would. Are you on? Or you can come and share my microphone. Oh, you're on.
Good morning. Yes, I am aware. We have 26 EBAs, 5 in New Zealand and 21 in Australia. Then we have a range of salaried staff, which you mentioned earlier, which is about 800 people. We do have a range of competitive conditions, and we compete against our major competitors and are constantly looking at benchmarking on the market. We know we have competitive terms, and we pay reasonably against all our competitors so we can attract great talent into our business.
Thank you, Grant. Brett, do we have any more questions?
Chair, we have a question from Mr. James Gee. A lot of the focus on questions has been around Woolworths. Could you comment on the other supermarkets and potential customer outlook, Coles, ALDI, Costco, Foodland, etc., and what percentage of these markets do we currently have, and are we increasing market share?
Okay. I'm going to talk broadly about that question before I get into some very commercially sensitive information, which I'm not going to divulge. Those customers, I think Clare talked about this earlier, we are diversifying our customer portfolio, and that's something that there is no doubt the change to the Woolworths contract provided a catalyst, and we will be a stronger business because of it. The likes of those customers that you've raised in your question we're engaged with, we're growing and hope to grow our business more fully with them over the period of time, but I'm not going to give out percentages, I'm afraid.
Chair, we have a final question online from Mr. Adam Verwy. Our company's research has identified your company is likely to be a significant gas user amongst listed companies in the food industry. SIX is an online broker that represents shareholders who are concerned about your exposure to gas risks and have some questions regarding how you are addressing them. Sharp price increases are highly possible as the East Coast gas market in Australia is predicted to face a shortfall in supply by 2026, which may affect Inghams' operations. The company stated it has plans for electrification of fossil gas-based plants and equipment as a means to reduce its Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions and undertaken feasibility studies for on-site renewable energy generation.
Can the board tell us what the results of that feasibility study was in relation to switching from gas to renewables, and does the company intend to create a plan to transition off gas?
I think I have discussed that already in terms of with New Zealand, we are 100% renewable electricity already, and we continue to look at ways of reducing our greenhouse gases. I mean, we are not a huge emitter, but we do, of course, have a—we did a feasibility study, and we are working on reducing that, and we are reducing it year on year and are heading successfully towards our 2030 goals. Anything you want to add, Ed?
No. I mean, I think that covers it largely. Soybean meal remains, I think, the biggest generator of our GHG footprint, and that's certainly something that we're looking at at the moment in terms of what alternatives exist out in the market. Sustainability continues to be something that, as an organization, we're proud of the position that we take, and it's something we continually try to improve upon as well.
Brett, any other questions?
Chair, then no further questions online for this item.
Okay. I think as there are no further questions and voting is now closed, I declare the annual general meeting of the Inghams Group closed. On behalf of the board, thank you very much for being so engaged and asking so many questions. Thank you for joining us today. Thank you. Have a good day.