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Willy Borsus visits iscal

This Friday, May 06, our Fontenoy site welcomed the Walloon Minister Willy Borsus as well as the Mayor of Antoing, Bernard Bauwens. It was an opportunity for iscal to highlight the 3 biggest challenges we face today as well as the investments that iscal is making.

A company that invests sustainably

Iscal is well established in the Tournai basin and intends to remain so. In 2021, a new digester (€1.5 million) was installed. This new tank makes it possible, by methanizing beet residues, to supply up to 15% of energy to the factory. We are currently building a new sugar silo (€28m) which will allow us to store an additional 80,000t of sugar at our Fontenoy site.

Friday, April 29, the iscal board of directors validated a budget of 11 million euros for the installation, in 2023, of a wind turbine as well as its integration into our electrical production network.

Robert Torck, CEO

Rising energy prices

We are in the midst of an energy crisis and iscal, as many companies, is bearing the brunt of this price increase. From 3.5% of our turnover in fiscal year 2020/2021 devoted to energy, we could reach 24% of this turnover in 2022/2023 based on current projections. We are not remaining inactive in the face of this price increase (see investments) and continue to develop new ideas to further modernize our business.

Measures at European, federal and regional level will prevent this energy crisis that we are experiencing from becoming a crisis for our economy and for employment.

Willy Borsus, Walloon Minister of Economy

In the fields, the grass is not always green

We are under pressure in the factory but in the fields the reality is not any easier for our 2300 Belgian farmers. The increase in costs also affects them on several levels: plant protection products (seeds), fertilizers, energy. Moreover, on the European market, not everyone benefits from the same conditions, which makes the daily life of our growers even more difficult.

Iscal and the IRBAB-KBIVB are investing in research to replace neonicotinoids with the support of Minister Borsus. We want to find sustainable ways to fight against the 3 main viruses acting against beets in Belgium.

Ronald Demuynck, Agronomist Director

The sugar manufacturers of the future

Changing a corporate culture is not something that can be achieved in a few months. We are working hard to change things internally in order to improve the working environment of our employees but also to recruit new colleagues. The technical professions are indeed suffering from a huge shortage and it is vital for us to make ourselves as attractive as possible as an employer.

We want to introduce the many jobs that iscal offers to young people in the region and try to encourage vocations.

Virginie Naessens, Director of Human Resources

By Brieuc

administrator

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