Darling Ingredients Inc. (DAR) 2026 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Hello, everyone. Thank you for joining us, and welcome to the Darling Ingredients Incorporated conference call to discuss the second-quarter 2026 financial results. (Operator Instructions)

各位好。感謝各位加入我們，歡迎參加 Darling Ingredients Incorporated 的電話會議，討論 2026 年第二季財務業績。（接線員指示）

I will now hand the conference over to Ms. Suann Guthrie, Senior Vice President of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

現在我將把會議交給投資人關係資深副總裁 Suann Guthrie 女士。請開始。

Thank you for joining the Darling Ingredients second-quarter 2026 earnings call. Here with me today are Mr. Randall C. Stuewe, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer; and Mr. Bob Day, Chief Financial Officer.

感謝各位參加 Darling Ingredients 2026 年第二季財報電話會議。今天與我一同出席的有 Randall C. Stuewe 先生，董事長兼執行長；以及 Bob Day 先生，財務長。

Our second quarter 2026 earnings news release and slide presentation are available on the Investor page of our corporate website, and it will be joined by a transcript of this call once it is available. You can also find reconciliations and disclosures with respect to non-GAAP financial measures in our earnings news release and slide presentation.

我們 2026 年第二季財報新聞稿與簡報投影片已公布於公司網站的投資人專區；待逐字稿可取得後，也將一併提供本次電話會議的逐字稿。您也可在財報新聞稿與投影片簡報中，找到與非 GAAP 財務衡量指標相關的調節表與揭露資訊。

During this call, we'll be making forward-looking statements, which are predictions, projections or other statements about future events. These statements are based on current expectations and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties.

在本次電話會議中，我們將作出前瞻性陳述，也就是對未來事件的預測、推估或其他陳述。這些陳述係基於目前的預期與假設，並可能受到風險與不確定性影響。

Actual results could materially differ because of factors discussed in today's press release and the comments made during this conference call and in the Risk Factors section of our Form 10-K, 10-Q, and other reported filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We do not undertake any duty to update any forward-looking statements.

實際結果可能因今日新聞稿所討論的因素、以及本次電話會議中的評論，並包括我們向美國證券交易委員會提交之 Form 10-K、10-Q 與其他申報文件中「風險因素」章節所述因素，而出現重大差異。我們不承擔更新任何前瞻性陳述的義務。

Now I will hand the call over to Randy.

現在我把電話交給 Randy。

Thanks, Suann. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us today. Before we get started, I want to thank everyone who participated in our Investor Day in May. During that event, we highlighted the global foundation we have built, the transformation of our business. and the opportunities we see to accelerate returns to our shareholders. We also outlined how our business is positioned to create consistent cash generation regardless of market conditions and public policy environments.

謝謝你，Suann。各位早安，感謝今天加入我們。在開始之前，我想感謝所有在五月參加我們投資人日活動的朋友。在該活動中，我們強調了我們所建立的全球基礎、業務轉型，以及我們所看到能加速為股東創造回報的機會。我們也說明了無論市場狀況與公共政策環境如何變化，我們的業務如何具備持續創造現金的定位。

When we provided our outlook for the second quarter in April, we based that guidance on our March performance. As the second quarter progressed, finished product markets strengthened considerably, fat and protein prices rallied, and several trade-related developments created a more favorable operating environment than we anticipated at that time. That, combined with our strong operational excellence and margin management programs, ultimately drove our results.

我們在四月提供第二季展望時，是以三月的表現作為該指引的基礎。隨著第二季進行，成品市場顯著走強，油脂與蛋白價格上漲，且若干與貿易相關的發展，創造了比我們當時預期更有利的營運環境。再加上我們強勁的營運卓越與利潤管理計畫，最終帶動了我們的業績表現。

During the quarter, we received $280 million in cash distributions from Diamond Green Diesel. We used that cash to decrease our debt by $223 million, closed on the purchase of the Patense plants in Brazil, and repurchased $73 million of stock.

本季我們自 Diamond Green Diesel 收到 2.8 億美元的現金分配。我們運用該筆現金將負債降低 2.23 億美元，完成收購巴西 Patense 工廠，並回購 7,300 萬美元的股票。

Darling's Core Ingredients business really delivered this quarter with improved global operations, margin expansion and focused commercial execution. Combined adjusted EBITDA for the second quarter was approximately $742 million, including about $353 million from our Global Ingredients business and $389 million from Diamond Green Diesel.

Darling 的核心原料（Core Ingredients）業務本季表現出色，受惠於全球營運改善、利潤率擴張以及聚焦的商業執行。第二季合併調整後 EBITDA 約為 7.42 億美元，其中約 3.53 億美元來自我們的全球原料（Global Ingredients）業務，3.89 億美元來自 Diamond Green Diesel。

Our Feed Ingredients segment delivered improved results as fat prices rallied and sustained momentum in the quarter, fueled by robust demand from the biofuel sector. We saw protein value strengthen due to tightening global fish meal supplies and increased poultry production in the United States. We continued our focus on operational efficiency, commercial optimization, price risk management and contract management, which contributed to improved gross margins.

我們的飼料原料（Feed Ingredients）事業部門交出更佳成果，因油脂價格上漲並在本季維持動能，主要由生質燃料產業的強勁需求所帶動。由於全球魚粉供應趨緊以及美國家禽產量增加，我們看到蛋白價值走強。我們持續聚焦於營運效率、商業最佳化、價格風險管理與合約管理，進而帶動毛利率改善。

Also in the quarter, we closed on the acquisition of three rendering facilities from the Patense Group in Brazil. These are great assets in great locations, which we believe will be immediately accretive.

此外，本季我們完成收購巴西 Patense 集團旗下三座煉製（rendering）設施。這些資產地點優越、品質出色，我們相信將可立即帶來增益（具立即增厚效果）。

Now turning to the Food segment. Collagen sales have improved year over year, reflecting not only increased customer demand, but also new applications for collagen across food, nutrition and the health space. As prices of whey continue to increase, companies are turning to collagen as a protein with benefits to complement their whey products. We remain very excited about our Nextida glucose control product, which continues to have repeat sales and also is now being sold in Asia.

接著談到食品（Food）事業部門。膠原蛋白銷售年增改善，反映的不僅是客戶需求增加，也包括膠原蛋白在食品、營養與健康領域的新增應用。隨著乳清價格持續上升，企業正轉向膠原蛋白，作為一種具備效益、可補強其乳清產品的蛋白來源。我們對 Nextida 血糖控制產品仍感到非常振奮，該產品持續有回購銷售，且目前也已在亞洲銷售。

Turning to the Fuel segment. Diamond Green Diesel delivered outstanding operational and financial performance during the quarter, reinforcing its position as the leading renewable diesel producer in the world. During the second quarter, we produced over 1.3 million metric tons of renewable fuel, maintaining DGD's position as the largest producer of advanced biofuels globally.

再來談燃料（Fuel）事業部門。Diamond Green Diesel 本季在營運與財務表現上都非常出色，進一步鞏固其作為全球領先再生柴油生產商的地位。第二季我們生產超過 130 萬公噸的再生燃料，維持 DGD 作為全球最大先進生質燃料生產商的地位。

Also, in the quarter, we sold approximately 350 million gallons at $2.23 EBITDA per gallon, delivering $389.2 million of EBITDA to Darling. This includes a favorable IEEPA tariff recovery of approximately $51 million at the entity level. Our non-DGD Green Energy businesses also performed very well due to the increased energy prices in Europe.

此外，本季我們以每加侖 2.23 美元的 EBITDA，銷售約 3.5 億加侖，為 Darling 貢獻 3.892 億美元的 EBITDA。其中包含在實體層級約 5,100 萬美元的有利 IEEPA 關稅回收。由於歐洲能源價格上升，我們非 DGD 的綠色能源（Green Energy）業務本季表現也非常亮眼。

Now with that, I'd like to turn the call over to Bob Day to take us through some financials. Then I'll come back and talk about the third quarter and what we see coming forward. Bob?

接下來，我想把電話交給 Bob Day，請他帶我們回顧一些財務數字。之後我會再回來談第三季以及我們對未來的看法。Bob？

Thank you, Randy. Good morning, everyone. As Randy said, we significantly increased earnings, cash generation, and balance sheet strength this quarter. Net income was $387 million or $2.41 per GAAP diluted share compared to $13 million or $0.08 per GAAP diluted share in the second quarter last year. For the first six months of 2026, net income was $521.6 million or $3.24 per GAAP diluted share compared to a net loss of $13.5 million or negative $0.09 per GAAP diluted share a year ago.

謝謝你，Randy。各位早安。如 Randy 所說，我們本季大幅提升獲利、現金創造能力與資產負債表強度。淨利為 3.87 億美元，或按 GAAP 計算每股稀釋盈餘 2.41 美元；相較去年第二季淨利 1,300 萬美元，或按 GAAP 計算每股稀釋盈餘 0.08 美元。2026 年前六個月，淨利為 5.216 億美元，或按 GAAP 計算每股稀釋盈餘 3.24 美元；相較一年前為淨損 1,350 萬美元，或按 GAAP 計算每股稀釋虧損 0.09 美元。

Net sales in the second quarter were $1.7 billion compared to $1.5 billion for the second quarter last year and $3.3 billion for the first six months of 2026 versus $2.9 billion for the same period a year ago. Second-quarter combined adjusted EBITDA was $742 million compared to $250 million in second quarter 2025. For the first six months of 2026, combined adjusted EBITDA exceeded $1.1 billion versus slightly under $450 million a year ago, reflecting strong contributions from both our Global Ingredients business and Diamond Green Diesel.

第二季淨銷售額為 17 億美元，相較去年第二季為 15 億美元；2026 年前六個月為 33 億美元，相較一年前同期為 29 億美元。第二季合併調整後 EBITDA 為 7.42 億美元，相較 2025 年第二季為 2.5 億美元。2026 年前六個月，合併調整後 EBITDA 超過 11 億美元，相較一年前略低於 4.5 億美元，反映我們全球原料業務與 Diamond Green Diesel 皆有強勁貢獻。

The earnings power of our global model demonstrated the value added from some of our more recent acquisitions, such as Valley Proteins, Gelnex, and FASA. Overall, Core Ingredients EBITDA increased to $353 million in the quarter, up significantly from the prior year at $207 million and last quarter, $256 million.

我們全球模式的獲利能力展現了部分較近期收購案所帶來的加值，例如 Valley Proteins、Gelnex 與 FASA。整體而言，本季核心原料 EBITDA 提升至 3.53 億美元，較去年同期 2.07 億美元以及上一季 2.56 億美元均大幅成長。

During Investor Day last May, we highlighted two important advantages about the Core Ingredients business that have gained meaningful traction this year. The first is measured by the operational metric implied return on replacement value included as page 15 in this quarter's slide deck.

在去年五月的投資人日活動中，我們強調核心原料業務的兩項重要優勢，而這兩項優勢今年已取得顯著進展。第一項是以營運指標「隱含重置價值報酬率」（implied return on replacement value）衡量，並收錄於本季投影片第 15 頁。

This framework illustrates how we create value by increasing cash generated from our existing asset base, most recently through negotiation of contract terms that allow us to keep pace with construction cost inflation, commercial optimization across our global network, and a more targeted approach to managing price risk. Together, these actions support the opportunity we previously outlined to generate an additional $150 million to $300 million in adjusted EBITDA over the following three years.

此架構說明我們如何透過提高既有資產基礎所產生的現金來創造價值；最近的作法包括協商合約條款，使我們能跟上建造成本通膨、在全球網路範圍內進行商業最佳化，以及以更聚焦的方式管理價格風險。綜合而言，這些行動支持我們先前所概述的機會，即在接下來三年額外創造1.5億至3億美元的調整後EBITDA。

More importantly, this framework shows how Darling can increase earnings and cash generation from its core business consistently over time. Our results so far in 2026 demonstrate real progress toward that objective.

更重要的是，此架構顯示Darling如何能隨時間推移，從其核心業務中持續提高獲利與現金創造能力。我們截至目前在2026年的成果，顯示朝該目標已取得實質進展。

The second advantage is our ability to increase EBITDA and our operating metric implied net cash from Rousselot's existing fixed asset infrastructure. As this business represents the majority of our Food segment, Rousselot provides significant opportunity to enhance earnings and cash flow through product mix optimization, as illustrated on page 16 of this quarter's slide deck.

第二項優勢是，我們能夠利用Rousselot既有固定資產基礎設施，提高EBITDA以及我們營運指標所反映的隱含淨現金。由於該業務占我們食品事業部的大部分，Rousselot透過產品組合最佳化提供顯著的提升獲利與現金流機會，如本季簡報第16頁所示。

As we continue to increase our mix of collagen and collagen with targeted health benefits like Nextida, we're using the same factories and infrastructure to produce products with meaningfully higher margins. In today's market environment, collagen generates roughly 2.5 to 3 times the margin of gelatin and targeted ingredients can generate 7 to 11 times. This gives us a powerful built-in earnings lever, positioning the business to consistently grow EBITDA and net cash generation on an as-is basis, even before factoring in future growth initiatives.

隨著我們持續提高膠原蛋白，以及具特定健康效益（如Nextida）的膠原蛋白之占比，我們使用相同的工廠與基礎設施，生產毛利率顯著更高的產品。在當前市場環境下，膠原蛋白的毛利率約為明膠的2.5至3倍，而具針對性的成分可達7至11倍。這為我們提供強而有力的內建獲利槓桿，使該業務即使在尚未納入未來成長計畫之前，也能在既有基礎上持續成長EBITDA與淨現金創造。

Diamond Green Diesel delivered an outstanding quarter, both operationally and financially. Darling's share of DGD EBITDA for the quarter was $389 million compared to $43 million in the second quarter 2025, supported by strong production of 356 million gallons, favorable market conditions, and the benefit of $51 million in IEEPA tariff recoveries at the entity level.

Diamond Green Diesel本季在營運與財務表現上都交出亮眼成績。本季Darling分攤的DGD EBITDA為3.89億美元，較2025年第二季的4,300萬美元大幅提升，主要受惠於3.56億加侖的強勁產量、有利的市場環境，以及在實體層級取得5,100萬美元IEEPA關稅回收的效益。

More importantly, DGD generated substantial cash. During the quarter, Darling received approximately $280 million in cash from DGD, roughly $211 million as dividends and $69 million from 2025 production tax credit sales. This allowed us to reduce net debt by over $220 million during the quarter. And as a result, our leverage ratio improved to approximately 2.3 times at quarter end compared to 2.9 times at the end of last year.

更重要的是，DGD創造了可觀的現金。本季期間，Darling自DGD收到約2.8億美元現金，其中約2.11億美元為股利，另有6,900萬美元來自2025年生產稅額抵免（PTC）出售。這使我們在本季將淨負債降低超過2.2億美元。因此，我們的槓桿比率於季末改善至約2.3倍，相較去年年底的2.9倍。

This debt reduction, however, doesn't illustrate the true impact of second quarter's performance and how it sets up our balance sheet as we move through 2026. Specifically, we had some cash demands over the second quarter that prevented us from paying down more debt, but we expect most or all of that will be offset in the second half of 2026.

然而，這次的降債幅度並未完全反映第二季表現的真正影響，以及其如何在我們邁入2026年後續期間時強化資產負債表。具體而言，第二季我們有一些現金需求，導致無法進一步償還更多債務，但我們預期其中大部分或全部將在2026年下半年被抵銷。

Examples are the acquisition of the Patense rendering assets in Brazil for around $122 million and $73 million in stock buybacks, and DGD's current assets minus current liabilities have increased substantially from the beginning of the year, mainly resulting from a strategic build of feedstock inventories to support high run rates and operational and commercial flexibility. With that context, lowering net debt by over $220 million in the second quarter was a great achievement.

例如：我們以約1.22億美元收購巴西Patense的煉製（rendering）資產、以及7,300萬美元的庫藏股回購；此外，DGD的流動資產減流動負債自年初以來大幅增加，主要是策略性建立原料庫存，以支撐高開工率並提升營運與商業彈性。在此背景下，第二季將淨負債降低超過2.2億美元是一項重大成就。

Meanwhile, we expect to offset most of the acquisition and stock buyback costs with sales of our trap and casings businesses. Subsequent to quarter end, on July 22, we closed on the sale of the majority of our trap business for approximately $90 million. We also signed an agreement to sell our European casings business, which we expect will close by the end of 2026.

同時，我們預期將透過出售我們的捕捉（trap）與腸衣（casings）業務，抵銷大部分收購與庫藏股回購成本。在季後的7月22日，我們完成出售大部分捕捉業務，交易金額約9,000萬美元。我們也已簽署協議出售歐洲腸衣業務，預期將於2026年底前完成交割。

Regarding DGD working capital, we anticipate a significant portion of this will flow through as cash by the end of '26 as inventories naturally draw down during that time. We also expect the majority of this year's production tax credits will be sold and paid for over the last half of 2026. And we believe the Core Ingredients business will continue to perform at a high level and generate meaningful cash.

關於DGD的營運資金，我們預期其中相當一部分將在2026年底前隨著庫存於期間自然下降而轉化為現金。我們也預期今年的大部分生產稅額抵免將在2026年下半年完成出售並收款。此外，我們相信核心原料（Core Ingredients）業務將持續維持高水準表現並創造可觀現金。

With all that, we believe our net debt will be very close to or below $3 billion by the end of 2026 and our leverage ratio well below 2 times. We recorded an effective tax rate of approximately 22% during the quarter. Excluding the impact of production tax credits and certain discrete items, our tax rate was approximately 27%. For the full year, we continue to expect an effective tax rate of roughly 25%.

綜合以上，我們相信到2026年底，我們的淨負債將非常接近或低於30億美元，槓桿比率也將遠低於2倍。本季我們的有效稅率約為22%。若排除生產稅額抵免及若干一次性項目的影響，我們的稅率約為27%。就全年而言，我們仍預期有效稅率約為25%。

With that, I will turn the call back over to Randy.

接下來，我把電話會議交回給Randy。

Thanks, Bob. As we shared at Investor Day, our global scale enables us to generate cash across down, mid, and even up cycle environments. We have built an essential business with a global footprint that is difficult to replicate, creating advantages that continue to strengthen.

謝謝，Bob。正如我們在投資人日所分享的，我們的全球規模使我們能在景氣下行、中段，甚至上行的環境中都能創造現金。我們建立了一個具全球版圖、難以複製的關鍵性業務，並形成持續強化的優勢。

As Bob said, our debt net leverage continues to improve, and we're on target to be below $3 billion in debt by year-end with a leverage ratio of well below 2 times. This is a true inflection point for our company and will create multiple opportunities for the future. We remain focused on operational excellence, disciplined capital allocation, and returning capital to shareholders.

如Bob所說，我們的淨負債槓桿持續改善，並正朝著在年底前將債務降至30億美元以下、槓桿比率遠低於2倍的目標前進。這是公司真正的轉折點，將為未來創造多重機會。我們仍專注於卓越營運、嚴謹的資本配置，以及回饋股東資本。

As we look ahead, we continue to see strong momentum in the third quarter and remain confident in the outlook for the balance of 2026 and even 2027. While the current market conditions are supportive, the fundamentals underpinning our business give us confidence beyond this year. Importantly, we do not view the progress we have seen in this quarter as a onetime event. The opportunities we outlined at Investor Day remain well ahead of us.

展望未來，我們在第三季持續看到強勁動能，並對2026年剩餘期間、甚至2027年的展望保持信心。雖然目前市場條件具支撐性，但支撐我們業務的基本面讓我們對今年以後同樣有信心。重要的是，我們不將本季所見的進展視為一次性事件。我們在投資人日所概述的機會仍在前方等待我們把握。

In Feed, we continue to see opportunities through contract management, commercial optimization and price risk management. In Food, we continue to improve our product mix towards higher-value collagen and targeted health ingredient applications. Combined with our ongoing portfolio optimization and balance sheet improvement, we believe the business is positioned to continue increasing earnings and cash generation over the next several years. The strategic actions we have taken to strengthen the business, improve margins, and simplify the portfolio position us to create value well beyond the current cycle.

在飼料（Feed）方面，我們仍透過合約管理、商業最佳化與價格風險管理看到機會。在食品（Food）方面，我們持續改善產品組合，朝向更高價值的膠原蛋白與具針對性健康成分的應用。再加上我們持續的投資組合最佳化與資產負債表改善，我們相信公司已具備在未來數年持續提升獲利與現金創造的條件。我們為強化業務、改善利潤率並簡化投資組合所採取的策略行動，使我們能在本輪景氣循環之外創造更長期的價值。

For the third quarter, we expect Core Ingredients EBITDA to be between $325 million and $340 million. Included in the second-quarter results were approximately $18 million in the net recovery of IEEPA tariffs for the Rousselot business. Excluding that benefit, our third-quarter outlook implies underlying performance that is generally consistent with the strong earnings level we delivered in the second quarter.

就第三季而言，我們預期核心原料EBITDA將介於3.25億至3.40億美元。第二季結果中包含Rousselot業務約1,800萬美元的IEEPA關稅淨回收。若排除該項效益，我們對第三季的展望所隱含的基礎表現，整體上與我們第二季交出的強勁獲利水準大致一致。

We continue to see support from growing global poultry production, strong global demand for our proteins and specialty products, and robust demand for our low-carbon fuels. On the DGD front, margins remain attractive, and we intend to produce approximately 335 million gallons in the third quarter.

我們持續看到全球家禽產量成長、全球對我們蛋白與特用產品的強勁需求，以及對我們低碳燃料的旺盛需求所帶來的支撐。在DGD方面，利差仍具吸引力，我們計畫在第三季生產約3.35億加侖。

With that, let's go ahead and open it up to questions.

那麼，接下來我們就開放提問。

(Operator Instructions) Heather Jones, Heather Jones Research.

(接線員指示) Heather Jones，Heather Jones Research。

Good morning. Thanks for the question and congratulations on the quarter. I guess I wanted to start with protein meals. Randy, I think you mentioned something about exports, but I just noticed a rally throughout the quarter and particularly in the latter part of the quarter, just strengthened pretty dramatically. So just wondering if you could flesh out those comments about what specific changes? Was it related all to the tariffs? And have you seen that strength continue into Q3?

早安。謝謝讓我提問，也恭喜本季表現。我想先從蛋白餐（protein meals）談起。Randy，我記得你提到一些關於出口的事，但我注意到整個季度、尤其是季末出現一波上漲，且走勢明顯大幅轉強。想請你更具體說明一下，究竟有哪些特定變化？這是否完全與關稅有關？而且你們是否看到這股強勢延續到第三季？

Yeah. Heather, this is Randy, and Bob and Carlos can comment if they want to. But really, you're seeing a very strong protein market globally. And it's ultimately driven, at least on the chicken side by the tightness in the fish meal off of the super El Niño or whatever you want to call it. We're just seeing very, very strong demand on all continents for proteins. And we just see that continuing through the balance of the year. I don't see anything interrupting it.

是的。Heather，我是 Randy，Bob 和 Carlos 若想補充也可以。但基本上，你看到的是全球蛋白市場非常強勁。最終的驅動因素——至少在雞肉這一端——是受到超級聖嬰現象（super El Niño）或不管你怎麼稱呼它，導致魚粉供應偏緊的影響。我們看到各大洲對蛋白的需求都非常、非常強。而我們也預期這種情況會延續到今年剩餘時間。我看不到有什麼會打斷它。

Okay. Perfect. And then I wanted to pivot to Diamond Green and just we've seen a lot of nervousness in the RIN market over the last few days. And it seems to be related to a lot of concerns related to 2025 SREs. And just was wondering what are you all expectations as to timing on when we get that resolved? And like what are your thoughts as to whether we get a number that's higher than what's outlined in the finalized RVO?

好的。非常好。接著我想轉到 Diamond Green。過去幾天我們看到 RIN 市場出現不少緊張情緒。看起來與市場對 2025 年 SRE（小型煉油廠豁免）的疑慮有關。想請問你們預期大概什麼時候會有結果、把這件事釐清？以及你們怎麼看：最後出來的數字是否可能高於已定案的 RVO（可再生燃料義務量）中所列的水準？

Yeah. Thanks, Heather. This is Bob. We're not expecting any meaningful change in SREs and SRE volumes that would impact the overall RIN S&D. I think our view is the worst thing that the administration could do right now is negatively impact supply. This policy, which was only implemented April 1, has essentially achieved or it's achieving the objectives of the EPA and the administration as a whole.

是的。謝謝你，Heather。我是 Bob。我們不預期 SRE 或 SRE 量會出現任何有意義的變化，進而影響整體 RIN 的供需（S&D）。我認為我們的看法是，政府現在最不該做的事，就是對供給造成負面影響。這項政策在 4 月 1 日才開始實施，基本上已經達成——或正在達成——EPA 與整個政府的目標。

It's leading to higher prices at the farm gate, which is what they wanted. And the industry responded within the third month of its implementation by making enough product that shows it can meet the mandate.

它帶動了農場端（farm gate）價格上升，這正是他們想要的。而且產業在政策實施的第三個月內就做出足夠的產品，證明有能力滿足配額要求。

So we're just -- we're not expecting a significant change that would overall impact this picture. And we think RIN tightness is going to continue, and that's what's required in order to maintain the kind of production that we saw in June and what we need to meet the mandate.

所以我們只是——不預期會有重大變動，足以從整體上改變這個局面。我們認為 RIN 的緊俏會持續，而這也是維持我們在 6 月看到的那種產量、以及達成配額所需要的條件。

Thanks so much for that color. Have a good day.

非常感謝你提供這些說明。祝你今天愉快。

Manav Gupta, UBS.

Manav Gupta，瑞銀（UBS）。

Good morning, team. Exceptionally strong quarter. I want to congratulate everybody on it. My first question is on the overall renewable diesel macro. I think world is short on diesel. You have seen a strong support from the government on RVO.

各位早安。本季表現異常強勁。我想恭喜大家。我的第一個問題是關於再生柴油（renewable diesel）的整體總體環境。我認為全球柴油供應偏短。你們也看到政府在 RVO 上提供了強力支持。

The way we think about renewable diesel margins and mid-cycle margins, should we think of a higher mid-cycle given all the dynamics that are playing on, including global distillate inventory depletion? And would that mean higher sustained earnings from your Renewable Diesel business for a longer period of time? If you could talk a little bit about that.

我們在思考再生柴油利潤率與中周期（mid-cycle）利潤率時，考量到目前各種動態（包括全球餾分油庫存下降），是否應該把中周期視為更高？這是否意味著你們再生柴油業務能在更長一段時間內維持較高且更持續的獲利？能否請你談談這點。

Yeah. Thanks, Manav. This is Bob. So I just want to be clear, there is a page in our deck where we talk about our business as a whole, down cycle, mid-cycle, and up-cycle environments. And the mid-cycle makes reference to $0.92 a gallon, and that's really just an approximate average of what the price per gallon was from 2021 to 2025. It's not a suggestion about what a future mid-cycle margin would be.

好的。謝謝你，Manav。我是 Bob。我想先說清楚：我們簡報裡有一頁談到公司整體業務在下行周期、中周期與上行周期的情境。其中中周期提到每加侖 0.92 美元，那其實只是 2021 到 2025 年每加侖價格的大致平均值。這並不是在暗示未來的中周期利潤率會是多少。

I think to answer your question, first, I would just point out that the BOHO spread is tighter than we've seen in a long time, which suggests that, as you point out, conventional fuel prices, conventional diesel prices globally are really allowing renewables to be more competitive from a cost standpoint than we've seen in a long time.

我想回答你的問題，首先我會指出，BOHO 價差（spread）比我們很長一段時間以來看到的都更緊，這表示如你所說，全球傳統燃料價格、傳統柴油價格，確實讓再生燃料在成本競爭力上比很久以來任何時候都更有利。

And if you look at spot margins today and the RVO and the mandate what we have through 2027, it certainly suggests an attractive margin environment for the foreseeable future, and that's what we expect.

而如果你看今天的即期利潤率，以及我們到 2027 年的 RVO 與配額要求，確實顯示在可預見的未來會是具吸引力的利潤環境，而這也是我們的預期。

Perfect. Bob, probably the next one also for you. Congrats on lowering bringing the leverage down, I think, from 3.2 to like 2.3 in a single quarter. At the Analyst Day in April, you had said you want to be below 2. Most likely, you will be below 2 by the end of the third quarter and probably you could continue to lower it.

很好。Bob，下一題大概也想請教你。恭喜你們把槓桿比率降下來，我記得單季就從 3.2 降到大約 2.3。在 4 月的分析師日，你曾說希望降到 2 以下。很可能到第三季末就會低於 2，而且你們也可能繼續降低。

My thought process here is, what level would you be comfortable getting to and probably building a buffer where in addition to the share repurchase, which you did this quarter, you could also possibly contemplate a dividend just to reward your shareholders?

我的想法是：你們會覺得降到什麼水準才算舒適，並且建立一個緩衝？在除了本季已做的庫藏股（share repurchase）之外，也可能考慮發放股利（dividend）來回饋股東？

Yeah. Thanks, Manav. So yeah, you're right. We -- our objective is to get down below $3 billion of debt. I think given the EBITDA run rate that we're on right now, that would comfortably put us below 2 times leverage. I think what we're more focused on is total debt level because we want to be in a comfortable leverage position even in a mid-cycle environment. And so that's what we're striving for.

是的。謝謝你，Manav。沒錯，你說得對。我們——我們的目標是把債務降到 30 億美元以下。以我們目前的 EBITDA 走勢來看，這會讓我們很有把握地把槓桿降到 2 倍以下。我想我們更關注的是總債務水位，因為我們希望即使在中周期環境下，也能維持在一個舒適的槓桿位置。因此這就是我們努力的方向。

We did highlight at Investor Day that once we achieve our goals in terms of total debt level, then we can evaluate a different type of capital strategy that potentially could include shareholder value initiatives that we really haven't considered as much in the past, but we now are able to do since we've built out the global network that we have, and we have more stable earnings than what we've had in the past.

我們在投資人日也強調過，一旦我們在總債務水位方面達成目標，就能評估不同類型的資本策略，其中可能包括股東價值相關的措施——這些是我們過去較少考慮的，但現在因為我們已建立起全球網絡，且獲利比過去更穩定，因此具備條件去做。

Thank you and congrats on a great quarter.

謝謝，也恭喜本季表現非常出色。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Derrick Whitfield, Texas Capital.

Derrick Whitfield，Texas Capital。

Thank you, good morning, guys, and congrats on a banner quarter. I wanted to start with DGD. Given the strength of really, US, Canada and international markets, how are you guys thinking about the allocation of RD and SAF volumes across those markets to optimize margins?

謝謝，早安，各位，也恭喜本季創下亮眼佳績。我想先從 DGD 談起。考量到美國、加拿大以及國際市場的強勁需求，你們如何思考在這些市場之間分配 RD 與 SAF 的銷量，以最佳化利潤率？

Yeah. Thanks, Derrick. This is Bob. I think what you're alluding to is margin attractiveness in RD relative to SAF that's better than what we had seen previously. That really depends on which market you're selling into.

是的。謝謝你，Derrick。我是 Bob。我想你所暗示的是，相較於 SAF，RD 的利潤率吸引力比我們先前看到的更好。這其實很取決於你銷售到哪個市場。

I think RD is more attractive relative to SAF, more so in Europe than what we have in the United States for our existing sales book. As everyone knows, Europe is a mandated market. The United States is a voluntary market. In the mandated market, those prices can move up and down depending on supply and demand, and we're not seeing a huge advantage in SAF in that market. But in the US, in our voluntary market, certainly with sales on our books, those SAF sales command a premium over RD and continue to earn a more attractive margin than RD.

我認為相較於 SAF，RD 更具吸引力；就我們現有的銷售組合而言，歐洲比美國更明顯。眾所周知，歐洲是強制性市場。美國是自願性市場。在強制性市場中，價格會隨供需上下波動，而我們在那個市場並沒有看到 SAF 有很大的優勢。但在美國、在我們的自願性市場中，尤其是就我們帳上既有的銷售而言，那些 SAF 銷售相較於 RD 仍有溢價，並且持續帶來比 RD 更具吸引力的利潤率。

So we're certainly going to take advantage of that. And we expect to produce SAF at a similar rate to what we've been doing over the past 12 to 18 months.

所以我們當然會善用這一點。而且我們預期 SAF 的產量會維持在過去 12 到 18 個月大致相同的水準。

Great. And then on my follow-up, just with the capital increase for 2026. So you guys did initially message that during 1Q earnings. But maybe could you speak to some of the investments and the expected uplift in business results associated with the investments?

很好。那我追問一下，關於 2026 年資本支出增加。你們在第一季財報時一開始有提到這點。但能否談談一些投資項目，以及這些投資預期會帶來的營運成果提升？

Yeah. So I'm not sure I totally understood the question, Derrick. So are you talking about investments from '22 and '23 or more recently?

好的。Derrick，我不確定我是否完全理解你的問題。所以你是在談 2022 和 2023 年的投資，還是更近期的？

More recently. So with the increase in 2026 capital, you guys initially messaged that in 1Q. Could you maybe speak to some of the investments that you guys are undertaking and then expected uplift in the business results?

更近期的。也就是 2026 年資本增加這件事，你們在第一季一開始有提到。能否談談你們正在進行的一些投資，以及預期對營運成果的提升？

Yeah. Okay. So yeah, and I think when we started the year, we estimated that maintenance CapEx would be around $400 million. We revised that slightly higher to $450 million.

好的。了解。是的，我想在年初時，我們估計維護性資本支出（maintenance CapEx）大約是 4 億美元。我們把它小幅上修到 4.5 億美元。

That's really just a function of increased cash flow into the business and identifying opportunities to just increase -- debottleneck in certain locations, slightly increase capacity, improve efficiencies. It's -- I wouldn't say it's a material change to our CapEx plan for the year. But in a year like this, we're certainly going to take advantage of the opportunity to do a little bit more and just increase efficiencies.

這主要是因為流入業務的現金流增加，並且我們辨識到一些機會，可以在某些據點做一些提升——在特定地點進行去瓶頸、略微提高產能、改善效率。我不會說這是我們今年資本支出計畫的重大變動。但在像今年這樣的年度，我們當然會把握機會多做一點，來提升效率。

I mean, Derrick, this is Randy. Clearly, in '24 and 2025, we had to pull back the reins on the capital spend. And you never want to put these factories into a run-to-fail mode. And so a little bit of make-up capital in here. And then ultimately, we're -- the poultry expansion in the Southeast in the United States, we're running the Valley system wide open full now, and we've been able to expand it and optimize it and we're getting the earnings out of it, and that's the inflection point that's very different than last year.

我是 Randy，Derrick。很明顯，在 2024 年和 2025 年，我們必須收緊資本支出。而你永遠不希望讓這些工廠進入「跑到壞才修」（run-to-fail）的模式。所以這裡有一點補回的資本支出。然後最終，我們在美國東南部的家禽擴產，我們現在讓 Valley 系統全線滿載運轉，而且我們已經能夠擴張並最佳化它，也把獲利做出來了；這就是與去年非常不同的轉折點。

Makes complete sense. Great quarter, guys. Thank you.

完全合理。各位這一季表現很棒。謝謝。

Andrew Strelzik, BMO Capital Markets.

BMO Capital Markets 的 Andrew Strelzik。

Hey, good morning. Thanks for taking the question. And I apologize, I dropped for a minute accidentally. So I apologize if I ask something that's already been asked. But you talked about your enthusiasm for the balance of the year and '27. And obviously, we saw the base business guidance for 3Q.

嗨，早安。謝謝讓我提問。不好意思，我剛剛不小心掉線了一分鐘。所以如果我問到已經被問過的問題，先跟各位致歉。不過你們談到對今年剩餘時間以及 2027 年的樂觀。而且很明顯，我們也看到你們對第三季的基礎業務指引。

But with the volatility in market fundamentals recently and coming off the strength in 2Q, can you frame kind of current spot run rate margin structures relative to the high, medium, low framework from the Investor Day? Are we kind of still at the high scenario that you talked about previously? Are we above? How do you see that kind of on a go-forward?

但考量近期市場基本面波動，以及第二季的強勁表現之後，你們能否用投資人日（Investor Day）所提的高、中、低情境框架，來說明目前現貨（spot）運行水準下的利潤結構？我們是否仍處在你們先前談到的高情境？還是更高？你們對未來走勢怎麼看？

Yeah. And I've gotten to sit in the seat for quite a while here. And if you live long enough in this business, you see some of these cycles. And ultimately, we don't -- we're very enthusiastic through the end of '26 and even '27.

是的。我在這個位置上坐了相當一段時間。如果你在這個產業待得夠久，就會看到一些循環。而最終，我們對 2026 年底，甚至到 2027 年都非常樂觀。

And what we're saying is the Core Ingredient business, the acquisitions we made in the past have been rationalized, optimized. We've done some divestitures. And so the Core Ingredients business is going to roll at that $325 million, $340 million level.

我們的意思是，核心原料（Core Ingredient）業務方面，我們過去做的收購已經完成合理化與最佳化。我們也做了一些資產處分。因此，核心原料業務將會維持在 3.25 億到 3.4 億美元的水準運轉。

That number, it was very, very simple. That for us, that was just basically, once again, the June run rate and multiplied times 13 for the quarter. And we see nothing -- the third quarter typically can be a little challenging because of weather, summer weather is hot here and hot in Europe. But ultimately, the strong protein, strong fat markets continue to go.

那個數字其實非常、非常簡單。對我們而言，基本上就是再一次用 6 月的運行水準（run rate），乘以一季的 13 週。而我們沒有看到任何——第三季通常可能會因天氣而稍具挑戰，因為這裡以及歐洲的夏季天氣炎熱。但總體而言，強勁的蛋白市場、強勁的油脂市場仍在延續。

DGD, we feel very positive about the margin environment that's out there. Yeah, heating oil is up one day. Yes, RINs are down one day. The crushing industry and the soy side is running wide open full, but yet soybean stocks come down, so soybean oil. So you can't exactly get bearish on fats and oil. So we feel just really, really good about it.

DGD 方面，我們對目前的利潤率環境非常正面。是的，取暖油某天會上漲。是的，RINs 某天會下跌。壓榨產業與黃豆端滿載運轉，但黃豆庫存卻在下降，所以帶動豆油。因此你很難真的對油脂與油品轉為看空。所以我們感覺非常、非常好。

As we said on our Investor Day, where we're at today is where we wanted to be a couple of years ago, taking big money off of the balance sheet such that we have the flexibility to have Darling looked at as a different company. There's -- we have a very, very prestigious place in the world in our business. And I think it's really delivering now. It's set up to continue to grow organically and through debottlenecking, as Bob's words, in different places. And I just see it as a really positive outcome as we go into '27.

正如我們在投資人日所說，我們今天所處的位置，就是我們幾年前希望達到的狀態：從資產負債表上拿掉大量負債，讓我們具備彈性，讓市場把 Darling 視為一家不同的公司。我們在全球的產業中擁有非常、非常崇高的地位。而我認為現在真的正在展現成果。它已經準備好持續透過有機成長以及在不同據點的去瓶頸（用 Bob 的說法）來擴張。而我認為當我們邁入 2027 年，結果會非常正面。

I think our comments that we don't see the risk in the RVO that maybe some in the market want to impute out there. It's doing what it's supposed to do. In second quarter, we produced the gallons that it's needed to fulfill it. And that was the naysayers that were out there.

我想我們的評論是，我們並不認為 RVO 存在某些市場人士想要推定的那種風險。它正在做它應該做的事。在第二季，我們生產了滿足其履行所需的加侖數。而這也回應了那些唱衰者的說法。

So I think the environment is very solid. Demand in the world is very robust for renewables with the higher oil prices. And so Bob, do you want to add anything before I --?

所以我認為整體環境非常穩健。在油價較高的情況下，全球對再生能源的需求非常強勁。所以 Bob，在我--之前你還想補充什麼嗎？

Look, I think the last thing I would say is if you look at those margin environments, if we talk about down, mid and up-cycle environments, yeah, we're not in a mid-cycle environment right now.

你看，我最後想說的是，如果你看那些利潤率環境，若我們談下行、中期與上行週期的環境，沒錯，我們現在並不處於中期週期環境。

No.

不是。

It's -- if you look at spot margins, it's more towards that up cycle as we sit here today. And as Randy said, we're optimistic about what that's going to continue to look like here over the next few quarters.

如果你看現貨利潤率，就我們今天所處的位置而言，更偏向上行週期。而且如 Randy 所說，我們對未來幾個季度這種狀況將如何延續感到樂觀。

Okay. Great. That's helpful. And maybe to your point about the evolution of the balance sheet, it feels like given the results and the outlook, you're going to be to your targets and through your targets sooner rather than later. So can you just -- obviously, we saw the buyback in the quarter.

好的。很好。這很有幫助。另外，回到你提到資產負債表演進的觀點，感覺以目前的結果與展望來看，你們達到目標、甚至超過目標會比預期更快。所以你能不能—顯然，我們看到本季有回購。

Can you kind of just give us your updated thoughts on capital allocation once you do get to those target levels? And is that kind of a tell on which way you're leaning? Just curious for some updated thoughts around capital allocation.

你能否大致談談，一旦你們達到那些目標水位後，對資本配置的最新想法？而這是否某種程度上透露你們傾向的方向？只是想了解一下資本配置方面的最新看法。

Yeah. It's -- number one, it's above my pay grade, so we'll go there. But it allows discussion in the Boardroom to go where we wanted to go. And that is making sure that people view a yield under Darling, not as a commodity company, but one that can deliver a dividend and share repurchases on a consistent basis.

是的。第一，這超出我的職權範圍，所以我們就先說到這裡。但這讓董事會的討論能朝我們想要的方向前進。也就是確保大家把 Darling 視為一家能提供殖利率的公司，而不是一家大宗商品公司；並且能以一致的方式發放股利與進行股票回購。

Bob laid out the -- or the low, the mid and the up-cycle environments, and it gives enough cash flow to do what we want to do going forward. So we stayed laser-focused on bringing the debt down to below $3 billion, getting the leverage ratio below 2, put a capital policy or a max debt policy in at 2.5 times, and we're able to do everything at that time.

Bob 說明了—也就是低、中與上行週期環境，而這能帶來足夠的現金流，讓我們未來能做我們想做的事。因此我們持續高度聚焦：把負債降到 30 億美元以下、把槓桿比率降到 2 以下，並在 2.5 倍設立資本政策或最高負債政策，屆時我們就能把所有事情都做到。

So like I said, this was our dream two years ago, and then we hit a pretty solid and difficult cycle. We didn't see the cycle coming on in DGD. It came. We lived through it. We paid down debt while we were there. We maintained the plants and very happy with the acquisitions we made during the time. And so we're in a different setting point now than where we've ever been.

所以如我所說，這是我們兩年前的夢想，然後我們遇到一個相當紮實且艱難的週期。我們沒有預見 DGD 的週期會到來。它來了。我們挺過去了。我們在那段期間也償還了債務。我們維持了工廠運作，並且對那段時間所做的併購非常滿意。因此我們現在所處的起點，與過去任何時候都不同。

And so that's where our enthusiasm is. And it gives me the chance then to have the discussion in the Boardroom about how to transform Darling going forward.

這就是我們熱情所在。也讓我有機會在董事會討論，未來要如何轉型 Darling。

Great. Thank you so much.

太好了。非常感謝。

Ben Kallo, Baird.

Ben Kallo，Baird。

Hey, good morning guys, and congratulations on all the work. Maybe if you guys could talk a little bit about the supply side for RD, if you guys could see any capacity coming online or new capacity intended to be built. I think you guys did a good job talking about the demand side, but just if you could touch on the supply side, please.

各位早安，恭喜你們完成了這麼多工作。也許你們可以談談 RD 的供給面，如果你們看到有任何產能即將上線，或有新產能計畫要建置。我覺得你們在需求面談得很好，但也請你們稍微觸及一下供給面，謝謝。

Yeah. Thanks, Ben. I think we're impressed by what the industry was able to achieve in June. And it's the classic -- the best cure for high prices are high prices in these type of markets. What we're seeing is nameplate capacity is a number and most companies are able to overachieve that when the operating environment is positive, and that's what we're seeing.

好的。謝謝你，Ben。我想我們對產業在 6 月能達成的成果印象深刻。這是典型的情況—在這類市場中，高價格的最佳解方就是高價格本身。我們看到的是，名目產能只是一個數字；當營運環境正向時，多數公司都能超越名目產能，而我們現在看到的就是這種情況。

We're not necessarily seeing a lot of new capital for increased capacity in renewable diesel, at least in the United States. I think if we were to get set three that provides a longer-term outlook for the RVO and mandated volumes, then we would likely see that. But what we do see is that with existing capacity and performing capabilities that we're able to make enough product as an industry to meet the -- and satisfy the mandate.

我們不一定看到有很多新增資本投入，以擴增再生柴油的產能，至少在美國是如此。我想如果我們能拿到 Set 3，提供更長期的 RVO 與法定量的展望，那我們很可能會看到這種情況。但我們確實看到的是，憑藉既有產能與實際運轉能力，整個產業能生產足夠的產品來符合—並滿足法規要求。

Great. Just on the Nextida side, you mentioned that you're starting sales in China, I believe. Could you just talk about that market and the opportunity there? And then just if there's any kind of -- if it's more competitive there, if there's other kind of products that you're competing against and how it's different than the US and European markets?

很好。再談 Nextida 這邊，你提到我相信你們已開始在中國銷售。你能否談談那個市場以及其中的機會？另外，那邊是否競爭更激烈、你們在與哪些其他產品競爭，以及它與美國與歐洲市場有何不同？

Yeah. As we look around the world, Ben, and it's great to have you back as a believer here. Ultimately, we're looking at a transformation of the gelatin to the collagen business that's out there. Gelatin was pretty much commoditized. It could make EUR1 per kilogram kind of market to market.

是的。Ben，當我們放眼全球，而且很高興你回來成為這裡的信徒。最終，我們看到的是市場正從明膠轉型到膠原蛋白的業務。明膠基本上已商品化。它可能是每公斤 1 歐元左右、因市場而異的產品。

And then as Bob said, hydrolyzed collagen, which has way more applications in the universe, has 2.5, 3 times. And so we transitioned our extraction capacity to the hydrolyzed collagen market. And we've seen that take off in Asia.

然後如 Bob 所說，水解膠原蛋白在各種應用上要多得多，價格大約是 2.5 到 3 倍。因此我們把萃取產能轉向水解膠原蛋白市場。而我們看到它在亞洲快速起飛。

That kind of got -- was slow to grow in both Europe and Asia, got shut down in the COVID era. So we've come out of that now. Asia is rapidly growing. We've approved projects for a spray dryer to make collagen now in Kaiping, China, and we're going to add extraction and spray drying capacity in Paraguay. And so the marketplace there is growing in the mid- to upper single digits right now.

那一塊在歐洲與亞洲的成長一度偏慢，並在 COVID 時期被迫停擺。所以我們現在已走出那段時期。亞洲正在快速成長。我們已核准在中國開平建置用於生產膠原蛋白的噴霧乾燥設備專案，並且將在巴拉圭增加萃取與噴霧乾燥產能。因此目前那邊的市場正以中到高個位數的速度成長。

And then ultimately, our Nextida portfolio is kind of the 2.0 of the hydrolyzed collagen for a specialty health and wellness application. We continue to see reorders now in the Nextida glucose control. I mean, it's really fascinating as you watch the -- some of the side effects of the GLP-1 drugs out there that are now becoming in the narrative in the media. This protein product has very similar applications without those side effects as we're aware today.

而最終，我們的 Nextida 產品組合可說是水解膠原蛋白的 2.0 版本，面向更專業的健康與保健應用。我們持續看到 Nextida 血糖控制產品的再訂購。當你觀察目前外界對 GLP-1 藥物一些副作用的討論逐漸在媒體敘事中浮現時，這真的很有意思。就我們目前所知，這款蛋白產品在應用上非常相近，但沒有那些副作用。

Very shortly here, you're going to see a launch and a new naming of our Nextida Brain product. We believe after the clinical trials that it has some pretty incredible health benefits going forward. So the portfolio was poised.

在不久的將來，你們會看到我們 Nextida Brain 產品的上市以及新的命名。我們相信在完成臨床試驗後，它未來會帶來一些相當驚人的健康效益。因此這個產品組合已蓄勢待發。

And so the Nextida line isn't a one year deal. It's a five-year build, maybe longer because there's another half dozen products underneath it. But we see that space as something where it's very attractive to us. We're a large global player in it, and the margin structure is just going to continue to improve over time for us.

因此 Nextida 產品線不是一年的案子。它是一個五年的建置，甚至可能更久，因為底下還有另外半打產品。但我們認為那個領域對我們非常有吸引力。我們是其中的大型全球玩家，而我們的利潤結構將隨時間持續改善。

Okay, thank you, guys.

好的，謝謝各位。

Conor Fitzpatrick, Bank of America.

Conor Fitzpatrick，美國銀行。

Good morning, everybody. Thanks for taking my question. So it has been apparent that the RINs market has been pretty difficult to balance, which is a good problem for producers of RINs to have.

各位早安。謝謝讓我提問。所以很明顯，RINs 市場一直相當難以平衡，對 RINs 生產商來說，這算是個「好問題」。

I wanted to just get a kind of check on what's going on with domestic utilization and where net imports could progress. It looks like biodiesel utilization in the United States has been rising. That's been kind of late as a result of probably ramping up difficulties, rehiring staffing, also methanol input costs.

我想簡單確認一下美國國內使用量的情況，以及淨進口可能如何演變。看起來美國的生質柴油使用量一直在上升。這種上升有點偏晚，可能是因為擴產爬坡的困難、重新招募人力，以及甲醇投入成本等因素。

So I was wondering how far from max biodiesel utilization are we in the United States? And what is the opportunity or possibility that net exports of biodiesel and renewable diesel out of the US could flip and supply the market just to make sure the RINs market is balanced?

所以我想請教，美國距離生質柴油最大使用量還有多遠？另外，美國生質柴油與再生柴油的淨出口是否有機會或可能反轉、轉而供應國內市場，以確保 RINs 市場能夠達到平衡？

Yeah. Thanks, Conor. So I think as far as our -- how far away are we from max biodiesel production in the United States, we're probably getting somewhat close to that. There is certainly room for more imports. But overall, I think we're running at a very high rate overall with biodiesel and renewable diesel in the United States.

是的。謝謝你，Conor。就我們來看，關於「美國距離生質柴油最大產量還有多遠」，我們可能已經相當接近了。當然，進口仍有增加空間。但整體而言，美國的生質柴油與再生柴油目前都在非常高的運轉率水準。

Imports have a longer supply chain. They take longer to show up into the market. We expect that we'll see more imports July and beyond. And that's really important to meeting the overall mandate.

進口的供應鏈較長。進入市場需要更久時間。我們預期 7 月以及之後會看到更多進口。而這對於達成整體法定配額（mandate）非常重要。

In order for exports to slow down, we would need to see margins in the United States increase from where they are today. But ultimately, given the run rate we saw in June, what we expect to see from a slight increase in imports, we're in a position right now where we're probably going to be able to meet the mandate, but margins have to remain strong in order for that to happen.

若要讓出口放緩，我們需要看到美國的利潤率（margins）從目前水準再提高。但最終，考量我們在 6 月看到的運轉率，以及我們預期進口小幅增加的情況，我們目前的位置大概是能夠達成配額要求；但要做到這點，利潤率必須維持強勁。

Makes sense. And then have noticed an increase in animal-based protein, meat and bone meal protein value per ton surging relative to soybean meal and other vegetable-based protein meals. So it looks like as an animal rendering-focused company, Darling is benefiting from some advantages versus more agriculturally focused vegetable-focused companies. And clearly, that's a big benefit to the Feed Ingredients segment.

了解。另外，我注意到以動物來源為基礎的蛋白（例如肉骨粉）的每噸蛋白價值，相對於豆粕與其他植物性蛋白粕，出現大幅上升。所以看起來，作為一家以動物副產品處理（rendering）為主的公司，Darling 相較於更偏農業、偏植物的公司，正在受益於一些優勢。而且顯然，這對飼料原料（Feed Ingredients）部門是很大的利多。

Maybe you could just comment on the drivers of the relative value of different protein meals, how that sets up the cycle for Feed Ingredients going forward?

你是否可以談談不同蛋白粕相對價值的驅動因素，以及這將如何影響未來飼料原料的景氣循環？

Yeah. Conor, this is Randy. Clearly, thank you for differentiating us from the crushers and the Ag services businesses. We have a very unique position in the world. And ultimately, we provide fats to the fuel business and then all the proteins end up in three different segments really.

好的。Conor，我是 Randy。很感謝你把我們與榨油商（crushers）以及農業服務業者區分開來。我們在全球有非常獨特的定位。最終，我們把油脂提供給燃料業務，而所有蛋白則主要流向三個不同的領域。

You end up in aquaculture, and aquaculture is very strong in the world right now. And with the tightness in fish meal, it's adding value to our low ash poultry meal products.

其中一個是水產養殖，而目前全球水產養殖非常強勁。在魚粉供應吃緊的情況下，這也提升了我們低灰分家禽粉產品的價值。

The pet food business, while it had a really big up cycle during the COVID era when you needed a new friend at home, a little -- it loosened up a little bit and the prices moved up with the high-end pet foods and ultimately, some of the private labels are taking a little share back now. But globally, pet food demand remains very, very strong and continues to grow.

寵物食品業務方面，在 COVID 時期因為大家在家需要一個新夥伴，曾出現很大的上行循環；之後稍微鬆動了一些，而價格也隨著高端寵物食品而上移，最終一些自有品牌（private labels）現在又拿回了一點市占。但在全球範圍內，寵物食品需求仍然非常、非常強勁，並且持續成長。

And then the balance of it would be the commodity protein side of the mixed species products. And that's really reflective and being consumed in the strong global protein business. Everybody knows red meat is expensive. And so ultimately, the poultry is growing very rapidly, especially in the US, strong in Canada, strong in Europe, Poland, predominantly, and strong in China. So -- and the other APAC countries. So it's really a pretty balanced thing right now for us around the world as we provide protein and energy sources.

其餘的則是混合物種產品的商品型蛋白部分。這基本上反映並受惠於全球蛋白市場的強勁需求。大家都知道紅肉很貴。因此家禽成長非常快，特別是在美國；加拿大也很強，歐洲也很強，主要是波蘭，另外中國也很強。以及其他亞太（APAC）國家。所以對我們而言，當我們在全球提供蛋白與能量來源時，目前整體是相當均衡的狀態。

Thanks, everybody.

謝謝各位。

Matthew Blair, TPH.

Matthew Blair，TPH。

Thanks, and good morning and congrats on the strong results. You mentioned some of the positive trends in your Food segment. I think there was a comment that you're using collagen in whey protein applications. Can you just expand a little bit more on this? Why is this happening? And is this temporary? Or do you think it's a structural shift?

謝謝，早安，恭喜你們有很強勁的業績。你提到食品（Food）部門的一些正向趨勢。我記得有提到你們在乳清蛋白的應用中使用膠原蛋白（collagen）。能否再多展開說明一下？為什麼會發生這種情況？這是暫時性的嗎？還是你認為這是一個結構性的轉變？

Yeah. Thank you, Matthew. No, we -- look, today, we're able to compete on a cost basis with whey protein. And I think what the market has realized is that collagen can act as a replacement for that, and we're finding a home there.

好的。謝謝你，Matthew。不是，我們——你看，就目前而言，我們在成本基礎上能與乳清蛋白競爭。我認為市場已經意識到膠原蛋白可以作為其替代品，而我們也在那裡找到了一個落點。

As we move forward, given the overall demand for proteins in food products, we expect this tightness to continue, and we're finding a nice spot there that is a little bit different from where our core demand had existed prior to that.

往後看，考量食品產品對蛋白的整體需求，我們預期這種供應吃緊會持續，而我們在那裡找到了一個不錯的位置，這與先前我們核心需求所在的領域有些不同。

Sounds good. And then have you applied for any additional tariff recovery? Like should we expect anything coming in Q3 or Q4 of this year?

了解。另外，你們是否申請了任何額外的關稅返還（tariff recovery）？例如今年第三季或第四季是否可能會有進帳？

Yeah. We have. The tariff recoveries are classified into different categories based on likelihood of recapture. And so the ones that we have recognized are ones that we've largely been paid for. And then there are others that are remaining that we will recognize later if it gets to the point where the probability meets that standard.

是的。我們有。關稅返還會依據可回收的可能性，被歸類到不同類別。因此，我們已認列的那些，基本上大多已經收到了款項。另外還有一些尚未認列的部分，如果之後達到符合該標準的「很可能」門檻，我們會在較後期再予以認列。

Sounds good. Thank you.

了解。謝謝。

Jason Gabelman, TD.

Jason Gabelman，TD。

Good morning. Thanks for taking my questions. You highlighted another divestment, I believe, this quarter. Are there more noncore assets you could sell in the business? And conversely, as net debt approaches your target levels, will you declare the kind of M&A holiday over and look to inorganically expand the business?

早安。謝謝讓我提問。你們提到本季又完成了一項資產剝離（divestment），我想是這一季。公司還有更多非核心資產可以出售嗎？反過來說，隨著淨負債接近你們的目標水準，你們是否會宣布結束這段「併購假期」，並開始透過外部併購來擴張業務？

Yeah. Jason, we continue and as always, have looked at the portfolio. And yeah, there's a couple more out there that can qualify there if the numbers are met that we want.

是的。Jason，我們一直、也一如既往地在檢視投資組合。是的，如果能達到我們想要的數字，確實還有幾項可以符合條件。

The M&A holiday, it's kind of a fun word. We have a list globally of multiple expansions. And as we've done historically, it's really once you build the platform, the network, the model here, you now look at where you can minimize freight, maximize margins, and help your customers and your suppliers. And so we've got a list of expansions around the world that need to happen over the next three years.

「併購假期」這個詞挺有趣的。我們在全球有一份包含多項擴張計畫的清單。而且如同我們過去的做法，一旦你建立了平台、網絡與模式之後，接下來就會去看在哪裡可以把運費降到最低、把利潤率最大化，並協助你的客戶與供應商。因此，我們有一份全球擴張清單，未來三年內需要逐步落實。

But what we want to make sure we're telegraphing, we're writing in crayon on a big chief pad here is that we're not out there looking for that next big deal. We're out here trying to make sure that we optimize and manage the Darling model that we've been trying to build for the last 20 years. We declare that we're there. And ultimately, we'll add businesses that make sense that are accretive.

但我們想要確保我們傳達得很清楚、就像在大張記事本上用蠟筆寫下來一樣的是：我們並不是在外面尋找下一筆大交易。我們在這裡是要確保把我們過去 20 年一直在打造的 Darling 模式最佳化並妥善管理。我們宣示我們已經到位。而最終，我們會加入那些合理且具增益（accretive）的業務。

But end of the day, I would say over the next three to five years, it's more organic growth and expansion for collagen and some rendering. We're out of capacity on rendering in Brazil today. We need to look at that.

但歸根結底，我會說在未來三到五年，更多會是膠原蛋白以及部分煉製（rendering）業務的有機成長與擴張。我們目前在巴西的煉製產能已經滿載。我們需要看看這一塊。

The chicken industry, as you know, in the US was approved to speed up their line speeds. That's going to push us at all of our factories. And so we've got to be ready to go and anticipate with our suppliers. And I think that provides some really fundamental and strong growth for the next three to five years.

如你所知，美國雞肉產業已獲批准加快產線速度。這將推動我們所有工廠的需求。因此我們必須準備就緒，並與供應商一起提前因應。我認為這為未來三到五年提供了非常根本且強勁的成長動能。

Great. Thanks for that. And my follow-up is just on the DGD results in the quarter. The margin was extremely strong. I'm wondering if there were any kind of abnormal benefits in the quarter. Or was some of the strength due to maybe selling to markets outside of California like the Pacific Northwest, British Columbia, Europe. Just any more color on what drove that really strong number.

很好。謝謝你的說明。我接著想追問的是本季 DGD 的業績。毛利率非常強勁。我想知道本季是否有任何異常的利多因素。或者部分強勁表現是否來自於銷往加州以外的市場，例如太平洋西北、英屬哥倫比亞、歐洲。想請再多分享一些，究竟是什麼推動了那個非常亮眼的數字。

Yeah. So we announced the $51 million of IEEPA tariffs. So that's part of it. But yeah, there was -- there is more to do with it than that. I think I'd just say we do well, whether it's at DGD or in Darling, we do well in volatile markets.

是的。所以我們公布了 5,100 萬美元的 IEEPA 關稅。這是其中一部分。但對，確實不只如此。我想我會說，不論是在 DGD 或在 Darling，我們在波動市場中表現都很好。

I think our supply chain is extremely well positioned to take advantage of selling to the optimal market from buying the lowest cost feedstock on a CI score-adjusted basis and take advantage of when to price the different elements that go into a renewable diesel product. That volatility, it generally works in our favor. It worked in our favor in the second quarter for sure.

我認為我們的供應鏈定位非常好，能夠在以 CI 分數調整後的基礎上採購最低成本的原料，並把產品賣到最優的市場，同時掌握可再生柴油產品中各個組成要素的定價時點。這種波動性通常對我們有利。第二季確實對我們有利。

I think as the market stabilizes more like we are now, we expect a margin environment for our business to look more like the spot market, which is very healthy. But as you point out, $2.25 a gallon average for the quarter and second quarter, that was on average higher than what we saw in the spot market environment. And that's just DGD taking advantage of the volatility and running a very solid supply chain.

我認為當市場像現在這樣更趨於穩定時，我們預期本業的毛利環境會更接近現貨市場，而現貨市場其實非常健康。但如你所指出的，本季第二季平均每加侖 2.25 美元，平均而言高於我們在現貨市場環境中看到的水準。這就是 DGD 善用波動性並運作一條非常扎實的供應鏈所帶來的結果。

Thanks for that.

謝謝你的說明。

Carla Casella, JPMorgan.

JPMorgan 的 Carla Casella。

Right, thank you for taking the question. Just in the past, you've talked about getting -- looking to get to investment grade. And I'm just wondering if there's any update in terms of your leverage targets or thoughts about a potential investment-grade rating?

好的，謝謝讓我提問。過去你們談過希望達到投資級。我想請問在槓桿目標方面是否有任何更新，或對取得投資級評等的想法是否有變化？

Yeah, Carla, this is Randy. When you look at it, we've got about a $0.5 billion bond that's out there that's current now, maturing in April. Clearly, the cash generated this year, we have -- and the revolver, we have the capability of paying that off. And then we're down to like $1.8 billion of unsecured debt out there as I look forward here. One maturing in 2030, I believe, and one a little after that.

是的，Carla，我是 Randy。你看目前我們有大約 5 億美元的債券在外流通，現在仍有效，將於 4 月到期。很明顯，今年產生的現金流——再加上循環信貸額度（revolver）——我們有能力把它償還掉。然後往前看，我們在外的無擔保債務大概就降到約 18 億美元。其中一筆我記得是 2030 年到期，另一筆稍晚一些。

But yeah, essentially, we will be investment grade if we want to be. And that's -- as we decide the cap structure going forward, as we look at the different options of repatriating cash to shareholders, we're looking at the whole thing for Darling right now. And investment grade is one of those things that, like we said, we want to reiterate a 2.5 times leverage ratio. So yeah, implied with that is the investment-grade rating.

但對，基本上，如果我們想要成為投資級，我們就能做到。而且——當我們決定未來的資本結構、並評估把現金回饋給股東的不同選項時，我們目前正在全面檢視 Darling 的整體狀況。投資級就是其中之一；正如我們所說，我們想重申 2.5 倍的槓桿比率目標。所以，是的，這也隱含了投資級評等。

Okay. Great. And just kind of one quick follow-up on the tariff question. I know you're not including anything that is in that basket until it's likely. But do you have the value of what's the potential?

好的。很好。再快速追問一下關稅的問題。我知道在它變得更可能之前，你們不會把那一籃子裡的任何項目納入考量。但你們是否有潛在金額的估算？

We have not made that public, no.

我們沒有把那個公開，沒有。

Okay, great. Thank you.

好的，很好。謝謝。

There are no further questions at this time. I will now turn the call back to Randall Stuewe for closing remarks.

目前沒有進一步的問題。我現在把電話交回給 Randall Stuewe 作結語。

Thanks, everybody, for all your questions today. And as always, if you have additional questions, please feel free to reach out to Suann. Stay safe. Have a great day, and we thank everybody for joining us today.

謝謝各位今天的所有提問。一如往常，如果你們還有其他問題，歡迎隨時聯絡 Suann。注意安全。祝大家有美好的一天，也感謝各位今天參與我們的電話會議。

This concludes today's call. Thank you for attending. You may now disconnect.

今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝各位出席。您現在可以掛線。