Cromaris CEO
Behind Cromaris lies yet another challenging business year, which we successfully concluded despite significant inflation growth and continued increase in raw materials for fish feed production. In front of you is our fourth Sustainability Report, for the year 2023, which we published following the guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI Standard) and the sectoral standard GRI 13 Agriculture, Aquaculture, and Fisheries. All reports have been published in Croatian and English on Cromaris’s website. Adris grupa, in its Annual Report for 2023, published consolidated business and sustainability data, including data for Cromaris, in accordance with the provisions of the Accounting Act. During 2023, we began preparations for sustainability reporting according to the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS).
Cromaris’s market strength and competitiveness are based on quality, freshness, and innovation. Our assortment includes fresh fish, fresh fish fillets and steaks, and smoked fillets farmed and produced from the highest quality indigenous Mediterranean white fish species from both conventional and organic farming. In addition to conventional farming, organic species in Cromaris’s range include BIO sea bass and BIO seabream, and, since 2022, BIO meagre. Greater amberjack and dentex are farmed conventionally. Our customers and consumers can easily distinguish between products from conventional and organic farming by the labels on the products, with organic farming certified by EU Organic Farming, ICEA, Bio Suisse, and Naturland certifications. We farm fish without the use of antibiotics throughout the farming cycle. Antibiotic-free farming is certified by the Antibiotic-Free Supply Chain certificate according to DNV STP-80. The superior quality is recognized by customers, consumers, and industry experts, as evidenced by the awards Cromaris receives for its products. Cromaris’ meagre is the recipient of the Crystal Taste Award 2023, awarded by the International Taste Institute, as it has won the maximum three stars for outstanding taste and quality for three consecutive yearsIn 2023, the revenue from sales amounted to 105 million euros, which is 10 percent higher than in 2022. A total of 13,610 tonnes of whole fish equivalent (WFE) were sold, one percent higher than in 2022. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) amounted to 12.6 million euros, a 15 percent increase compared to 2022. Net profit in 2023 amounted to 3.8 million euros, a 57 percent increase compared to 2022. By 2023, we had invested over 95 million kunas in long-term assets. In 2023, as in 2022, Cromaris achieved an 88 percent share of sales in foreign markets and the same amount of revenue from sales. Our main export markets are Italy and countries in Central and Southeastern Europe. The share of revenue from sales in Croatia remained at last year’s 12 percent. Cromaris’s results are also recognized at the Croatian exporters’ convention, as Cromaris received the “Golden Key” award for the third consecutive year in the category of “Best Exporter in Italy.”
In 2023, we identified 14 taxonomy activities applicable to Cromaris, although technical criteria for compliance with environmental targets have not yet been prescribed for our core activity of mariculture. Compared to 2022, in 2023 three activities were assessed as taxonomic and aligned with EU taxonomy criteria, with capital investments (CapEx) in these activities amounting to 3.54 percent.
The success of Cromaris’s business depends on the quality of our products, customer and consumer satisfaction, employees, relationships with local communities, and supply chains. Our employees are also residents of local communities – islands, settlements, and cities where we operate, as well as consumers of Cromaris products. Therefore, continuous alignment of our business with environmental protection requirements, societal demands, and policies of transparent and fair business conduct is not a choice but an obligation for Cromaris. Cromaris has adopted a range of policies to ensure product quality and safety, combat discrimination, improve working conditions, enhance employee benefits, select suppliers which operate in line with sustainability principles, and protect the environment. Our policies are available to customers, consumers, suppliers, employees, and all interested stakeholders, and some of the most significant ones include: Quality, Food Safety, Environmental Protection and Social Responsibility Policy, Collective Agreement, Code of Ethics, General Terms of Procurement of Goods and Services, and General Terms of Sale and Product Delivery. We confirm compliance with environmental protection, socially responsible business practices, and product traceability through certifications such as ASC Farming, ASC Chain of Custody, IFS Food, GlobalG.A.P., GlobalG.A.P. GRASP, and certified quality and environmental management systems according to ISO 90001 and ISO 14001.
At the end of 2023, Cromaris employed 623 people, which is 5.2 percent more than in 2022. A total of 11 percent of employees were from third countries – The Philippines, Nepal, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, and Kosovo. In 2023, 95.7 percent were Cromaris employees, and 4.3 percent were agency workers. All workplace injuries in 2023 were categorized as minor, and the number of hours of sick leave decreased by 30.2 percent compared to 2022. In 2023, we continued activities to attract and retain new and existing employees, as well as the Careers Inspired by the Sea internship program. Throughout 2023, we continued collaboration with elementary, high schools, and higher education institutions in Croatia and abroad. We donated a total of 51,270 euros to sports clubs, for organizing humanitarian, cultural, and educational events, and for building communal and public infrastructure in local communities. Our employees also volunteered in environmental and marine cleanup activities, biodiversity educational workshops, and the Wings for Life race in 2023.
Cromaris manages its environmental impacts based on established baseline conditions, measurement and progress monitoring, and setting goals in line with global, EU, and national sustainable business strategies and policies. Since 2020, Cromaris has been calculating its carbon footprint in scopes 1 and 2, and in 2023, we reduced our carbon footprint by 26.9 percent. We included all four fish feed producers in the scope 3 calculation. The share of electricity produced from our renewable sources, i.e., solar photovoltaic power plants, in 2023, was 8.7 percent of total electricity consumption. Energy consumption intensity in 2023 was 7.64 GJ/tonne of fish, reduced by 6.7 percent compared to 2022. All hazardous waste and 86.6 percent of non-hazardous waste in 2023 were recovered, with only 13.5 percent of non-hazardous waste disposed of in landfills, i.e., 41 tonnes less than in 2022. We also received confirmation of socially responsible business practices from the Ja trgovac portal, which awarded us the Golden Shopping Basket for the first time in 2023 in the category of “Socially Responsible Company of the Year.”
While Cromaris continuously aligns its operations with sustainability goals, there is always room for improvement. Cromaris will continue to pursue positive management practices in the future to justify the trust of customers, consumers, and all stakeholders and maintain its position as a leader in Croatian mariculture.