Südzucker, with its sugar, special products, CropEnergies and fruit segments, is one of the leading companies in the food industry. The company’s business model is primarily based on on large-scale conversion of agricultural materials into high-quality products. The main shareholder are sugar beet farmers, holding 56 % of the share capital. The group headquarters are in Mannheim, Germany.

In the traditional sugar business, the group is the world market leader, with 29 sugar factories and two refineries, extending from France in the west via Belgium, Germany and Austria, through to Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, Hungary, Bosnia and Moldova in the east.

The special products segment, consisting of the functional ingredients for food and animal feed , chilled/frozen products, portion packs and starch divisions, is an important growth driver. The CropEnergies segment covers the bioethanol activities in Germany, Belgium, France and the UK. CropEnergies is setting standards in terms of technology and innovation, and is one of the leading players in Europe in the production of bioethanol for the fuel sector. In the fruit segment, the group operates internationally, is the world market leader for fruit preparations and is a leading supplier of fruit juice concentrates in Europe. In 2016/17, the group employed about 16,900 persons and generated revenues of EUR 6.5 billion.

Südzucker is partner in the BBI JU project ‘PROMINENT’ (Protein Mining of Cereal side-streams Exploring Novel Technological Concepts).