Marrone Bio Innovations, Inc. (MBII) 2022 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the first quarter 2022 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference call is being recorded.

女士們、先生們，下午好，歡迎參加 2022 年第一季財報電話會議。 （操作員說明）謹此提醒，本次電話會議正在錄音。

I would now like to hand the conference over to your host, Ms. Linda Moore. Ma'am?

現在我想將會議交給主持人琳達·摩爾女士。女士？

Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining our call. Welcome to the 2022 First Quarter Earnings Conference Call for Marrone Bio Innovations. Our presenters today are CEO, Kevin Helash; and Interim CFO, LaDon Johnson. And they are joined by Matti Tiainen, Senior Vice President for International Sales; and Kamal El Mernissi, Senior Director of Product Marketing for the Q&A session at the end of the call.

大家下午好，感謝您加入我們的通話。歡迎參加 Marrone Bio Innovations 2022 年第一季財報電話會議。今天我們的主持人是執行長 Kevin Helash；臨時財務長拉登·約翰遜 (LaDon Johnson)。國際銷售資深副總裁 Matti Tiainen 也加入了他們的行列。產品行銷高級總監 Kamal El Mernissi 在電話會議結束時進行了問答環節。

If you would please refer to Slide 2, I would like to remind you that this conference call may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding management's future expectations, plans, projections, forecasts and prospects. Certain material assumptions were applied in reaching these conclusions and making these statements. Therefore, actual results could differ materially from those contained in our forward-looking information. Important factors that could cause differences are contained in the reports filed by the company with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including under the heading Risk Factors, MD&A and elsewhere in the company's annual report, quarterly reports and other filings. The company expressly disclaims any obligation to revise or update any guidance or other forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this call.

如果您想參閱投影片 2，我想提醒您，本次電話會議可能包含 1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》安全港條款含義內的有關管理層未來預期、計劃和預測的前瞻性陳述、預測和前景。在得出這些結論和做出這些陳述時應用了某些實質假設。因此，實際結果可能與我們的前瞻性資訊中包含的結果有重大差異。可能導致差異的重要因素包含在公司向美國證券交易委員會提交的報告中，包括風險因素、MD&A 標題下以及公司年度報告、季度報告和其他文件中的其他部分。本公司明確表示不承擔任何修改或更新任何指導或其他前瞻性陳述以反映本次電話會議之後可能發生的事件或情況的義務。

After our remarks, we will hold a question-and-answer session. I will now turn the call over to our CEO, Kevin Helash. Kevin?

發言結束後，我們將舉行問答環節。我現在將把電話轉給我們的執行長 Kevin Helash。凱文？

Thank you, Linda, and thanks to everyone joining us today. I would be remiss if I did not start by expressing our sympathies to all those impacted by the conflict in Ukraine. Many of us in the MBI family have personal ties to the country. Our thoughts and prayers are with them, and we hope for a quick end to this humanitarian crisis.

謝謝你，琳達，也謝謝今天加入我們的所有人。如果我不先向所有受烏克蘭衝突影響的人表示同情，那就是我的失職。 MBI 大家庭中的許多人與國家有著個人聯繫。我們的思念和祈禱與他們同在，我們希望這場人道危機能迅速結束。

I'm proud to say, reports indicate that even under the worst of all circumstances, farmers in Ukraine have been able to plant over 30% of their spring crops according to the country's grain traders union. To illustrate the tenacity this has taken, a recent Reuters report spoke of growers wearing body armor as they go to work in the fields. While we anticipate some effect on our full year revenues in Europe due to the Ukrainian conflict, we will work diligently to make up the difference in other parts of the business.

我很自豪地說，據烏克蘭穀物貿易商聯盟稱，有報告顯示，即使在最糟糕的情況下，烏克蘭農民也能種植超過 30% 的春季作物。為了說明這種堅韌，路透社最近的一篇報導談到種植者在田間工作時穿著防彈衣。雖然我們預期烏克蘭衝突會對我們在歐洲的全年收入產生一些影響，但我們將努力彌補業務其他部分的差異。

Turning specifically to the first quarter, I'd like to speak broadly to the macro conditions we faced and provide additional color on our outlook for the second quarter and first half of 2022. LaDon will then go into more details on the numbers.

具體來說第一季度，我想廣泛談論我們面臨的宏觀狀況，並為我們對 2022 年第二季度和上半年的前景提供更多資訊。

To start, please turn to Slide 3. Our first quarter results, with solid revenues in the world crop markets and difficult weather conditions for specialty crop growers in the Western U.S., underscore the importance of our strategy to diversify our product mix and our geographic reach and while our merger agreement with Bioceres is key to the expansion of our business across these segments.

首先，請參閱投影片 3。 Bioceres 的合併協議是我們在這些領域擴展業務的關鍵。

We were very pleased with our North American seed treatment business, which expanded in the first quarter, thanks to the strong demand for our bioinsecticide/bionematicide product. As you know, in the fourth quarter of last year, our North American customers stocked up in anticipation of a normal season. For our partners serving the world crop markets, we saw an increase in sales in the first quarter as these products began to move through the channel and be placed on farms.

由於對我們的生物殺蟲劑/生物殺線劑產品的強勁需求，我們對北美種子處理業務在第一季的擴張感到非常滿意。如您所知，去年第四季度，我們的北美客戶因預計正常季節而備貨。對於服務世界農作物市場的合作夥伴來說，隨著這些產品開始透過通路進入農場，我們看到第一季的銷售額有所成長。

The dynamic was different for specialty crops. For the second year in a row in the Western United States, severe drought conditions curtail early season use of our fungicides. This is not an issue of performance. Our products continue to have strong support from the market. The challenge is that the dry conditions negate the overall demand for fungicides which, in turn, lowers the need for our customers to restock.

特種作物的動態有所不同。美國西部地區連續第二年遭遇嚴重乾旱，限制了我們殺菌劑早季的使用。這不是效能問題。我們的產品持續得到市場的大力支持。挑戰在於，乾燥的條件抵消了對殺菌劑的整體需求，從而降低了客戶補貨的需求。

Just to give you a feel for the severity of the circumstances growers faced, the USDA reported that March precipitation in California was less than 0.5 inch versus more than 2 inches in an average year. Additionally, Northern California and the Pacific Northwest incurred frost damage in the fruit and nut trees. The impact of the frost and its effect on orders going forward is still being determined.

為了讓您感受到種植者面臨的情況的嚴重性，美國農業部報告稱，加州 3 月的降水量不足 0.5 英寸，而平均年份則超過 2 英寸。此外，北加州和太平洋西北地區的果樹和堅果樹遭受了霜害。霜凍的影響及其對未來訂單的影響仍在確定中。

On a positive note, as we indicated in our fourth quarter call, we continue to foresee a sharp rebound in revenues in the second quarter, putting us on track for low to mid-teens growth for the first half of the year, which would represent a material increase over our revenue growth in the first half of 2021. Our forecast is supported by a healthy order book with strong demand from some of our most significant repeat customers. A key component of our growth in the first half will be sales of foliar and seed treatments for major row crops in the United States, Europe and Latin America.

從積極的方面來看，正如我們在第四季度電話會議中所指出的那樣，我們繼續預計第二季度的收入將大幅反彈，這使我們有望在今年上半年實現低至中雙位數的成長，這將代表與 2021 年上半年的收入成長相比，我們的營收成長出現了實質成長。我們上半年成長的關鍵組成部分將是美國、歐洲和拉丁美洲主要中耕作物葉面和種子處理劑的銷售。

In the U.S., our seed treatments are primarily used on soybeans, and the latest USDA planting intentions report indicates the potential for a record 91 million acres of soybeans, up 4% from acres planted in 2021. This bodes well for the use of our products and sales going into the 2023 season. To a certain degree, the anticipated increase in U.S. soybean planting is a function of the drop in Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay, which is expected to reduce yields. Despite those conditions, the outlook for our business in Latin America is very healthy going into the 2022 growing season.

在美國，我們的種子處理劑主要用於大豆，美國農業部最新的種植意圖報告顯示，大豆種植面積有望達到創紀錄的9,100 萬英畝，比2021 年種植面積增加4%。來說是個好兆頭以及進入 2023 年銷售季的銷售情況。在某種程度上，美國大豆播種面積的預期增加是巴西、阿根廷和巴拉圭大豆播種面積下降的結果，預計將導致單產下降。儘管有這些條件，進入 2022 年生長季節，我們在拉丁美洲的業務前景仍然非常健康。

As we discussed previously, we have made decisions regarding our manufacturing facility and our commercial activity in Russia, which are fully aligned with the broader international community in condemning the current actions by Russia in Ukraine. Our Pro Farm team has built a healthy level of inventory within Europe for its line of seed treatments and foliar products. By the end of this month, we expect to have enough seed treatment materials in Europe to supply our customers for the 2023 and 2024 planting seasons.

正如我們之前所討論的，我們已經就我們在俄羅斯的製造設施和商業活動做出了決定，這些決定與更廣泛的國際社會譴責俄羅斯目前在烏克蘭採取的行動完全一致。我們的 Pro Farm 團隊在歐洲為其種子處理和葉面產品系列建立了健康的庫存水準。到本月底，我們預計歐洲將有足夠的種子處理材料，為我們的客戶提供 2023 年和 2024 年種植季的產品。

Regarding our foliar products, we plan to have enough inventory by the end of May to cover at least 1 year of expected demand. We are also moving quickly with our plans to geographically expand the production capabilities of our Pro Farm portfolio. We believe that our current scope of options for manufacturing locations, combined with robust inventory, will carry us through any supply chain constraints that are related to Russia going forward. The diversification of our production outside of Russia is a strategy we have been working on due to commercial reasons for some time, but that timeline has been dramatically accelerated in today's environment.

關於我們的葉面產品，我們計劃在五月底之前擁有足夠的庫存，以滿足至少一年的預期需求。我們也正在迅速推進計劃，在地域上擴大 Pro Farm 產品組合的生產能力。我們相信，我們目前的製造地點選擇範圍，再加上強大的庫存，將幫助我們克服與俄羅斯相關的任何供應鏈限制。由於商業原因，我們在俄羅斯以外的生產多元化是我們一段時間以來一直在努力的策略，但在當今的環境下，這一時間表已大大加快。

All told, while the start to the year was challenging in the Western U.S., the outlook for the first half and remainder of 2022 remains promising. The continued diversification of our portfolio from a crop and geographic perspective remains critical to our long-term success. Of course, our proposed merger with Bioceres will play a key role in meeting that objective. The necessary steps towards completing the merger are well underway and, as previously reported, we expect to close the transaction in the third quarter of 2022.

總而言之，雖然美國西部地區今年年初充滿挑戰，但 2022 年上半年和剩餘時間的前景仍然充滿希望。從作物和地理角度來看，我們的投資組合持續多元化對於我們的長期成功仍然至關重要。當然，我們提議的與 Bioceres 的合併將在實現這一目標方面發揮關鍵作用。完成合併的必要步驟正在順利進行中，正如先前報導的那樣，我們預計將在 2022 年第三季完成交易。

I'd like to turn the call over to LaDon now to go into the financials beyond revenues in more detail, and then I'll sum up what I believe our key performance indicators are for the remainder of 2022. Over to you, LaDon.

我現在想把電話轉給 LaDon，更詳細地討論收入以外的財務狀況，然後我將總結我認為我們 2022 年剩餘時間的關鍵績效指標。

Thank you, Kevin. If you would refer to Slide 4, I'd like to expand beyond the revenue numbers Kevin already has discussed. Gross profit in the first quarter was $6.2 million as compared with $7 million in the first quarter of last year. Several factors were at play, most notably shifts in product mix. We also experienced higher raw materials costs, which may continue through the year. Additionally, we have expanded production at our Michigan manufacturing plant. This capital expenditure, which was mostly implemented in fiscal year 2021, will enhance efficiency and margins longer term. However, it also created some short-term variances.

謝謝你，凱文。如果您想參考投影片 4，我想擴展凱文已經討論過的收入數字。第一季的毛利為 620 萬美元，而去年第一季的毛利為 700 萬美元。有幾個因素在起作用，最明顯的是產品結構的變化。我們也經歷了原物料成本上漲，這種情況可能會持續一整年。此外，我們也擴大了密西根製造工廠的生產。這項資本支出主要在 2021 財年實施，長期來看將提高效率和利潤。然而，它也造成了一些短期差異。

Gross margins were 55.9%, also lower than in the first quarter of 2021, but in line with our annual target to maintain gross margins in the upper 50% range. That said, this was our 14th consecutive quarter with gross margins above 50%. The increased losses for net income and adjusted EBITDA are both reflected in the lower gross profit.

毛利率為 55.9%，也低於 2021 年第一季度，但符合我們將毛利率維持在 50% 以上的年度目標。也就是說，這是我們連續第 14 季毛利率超過 50%。淨利潤和調整後 EBITDA 損失的增加均反映在毛利的下降中。

Our bottom line results also were affected by the increase in operating expenses, which included a significant level of nonrecurring expenses from legal and other consulting fees associated with the merger agreement with Bioceres. Through the fourth quarter of 2021 and the first quarter of 2022, we've incurred $2 million to $3 million in such costs and these types of nonrecurring charges will continue until the deal is closed. Given how MBI defines adjusted EBITDA, I would remind you that you will not see the full effect of M&A-related charges in our adjusted EBITDA table until the transaction is complete.

我們的利潤也受到營運費用增加的影響，其中包括與 Bioceres 合併協議相關的法律費用和其他諮詢費用的大量非經常性費用。到 2021 年第四季和 2022 年第一季度，我們已產生 200 萬至 300 萬美元的此類成本，而此類非經常性費用將持續到交易完成為止。鑑於 MBI 如何定義調整後 EBITDA，我想提醒您，在交易完成之前，您不會在我們調整後 EBITDA 表中看到併購相關費用的全部影響。

We also incurred higher R&D costs to support the registrations and regulatory packages for some of the key products in our pipeline. These were planned expenses and key to accelerating our growth. Looking forward, our budget anticipates that 2022 operating expenses, exclusive of the nonrecurring charges, will remain flat with OpEx in 2021 plus inflation.

我們也產生了更高的研發成本來支援我們管道中一些關鍵產品的註冊和監管包。這些都是計劃支出，也是加速我們成長的關鍵。展望未來，我們的預算預計，2022 年的營運支出（不包括一次性費用）將與 2021 年的營運支出加上通貨膨脹保持持平。

Finally, cash used in operations increased to $8.4 million. We have been building inventory in anticipation of increased revenues going forward and as we relocated the Pro Farm seed and foliar treatments into Europe. Accrued liabilities are significantly higher, and cash will be affected as we pay down expenses associated with the merger agreement.

最後，營運中使用的現金增加至 840 萬美元。隨著我們將 Pro Farm 種子和葉面處理產品轉移到歐洲，我們一直在建立庫存，以期增加收入。應計負債顯著增加，當我們支付與合併協議相關的費用時，現金將受到影響。

Overall, as we look to the first half, we believe we are on track to meet our goal of low to mid-teens revenue growth while holding ongoing operating expenses in line.

總體而言，展望上半年，我們相信我們有望實現中低收入成長的目標，同時保持持續的營運支出不變。

Let me turn the call back to Kevin.

讓我把電話轉回給凱文。

Thank you, LaDon. If you would turn to Slide 5, I'd like to point you to the key metrics that will define our success in 2022. As I alluded earlier, our commercial focus remains on continued diversification of our portfolio across crops and across regions.

謝謝你，拉登。如果您想看幻燈片5，我想向您指出將定義我們在2022 年取得成功的關鍵指標。 正如我之前提到的，我們的商業重點仍然是跨作物和跨地區的投資組合的持續多元化。

We're anticipating our first large sale of Amplitude ST, our new broad-spectrum biofungicide seed treatment product, later this year. This will mark a significant inroad into the corn market for MBI to our partner, Albaugh. We anticipate Amplitude ST could be used on more than 5 million acres of corn in the United States in the 2023 planting season.

我們預計今年稍後首次大規模銷售 Amplitude ST，這是我們的新型廣譜生物殺菌劑種子處理產品。這對我們的合作夥伴 Albaugh 而言，標誌著 MBI 進軍玉米市場的重大舉措。我們預計 Amplitude ST 可以在 2023 年種植季節在美國超過 500 萬英畝的玉米上使用。

Our recent announcements of expanded agreements with our major global partners, like Corteva, are a key driver of our future success. Our European seed treatment business is expected to nearly double in the first half of the year. This growth will be fueled by, in part, the launch of Takla and increased demand for our UBP seed treatment. Likewise, the growing relationship with Rizobacter will continue to be the cornerstone of our expansion in the Latin American market.

我們最近宣布與 Corteva 等主要全球合作夥伴擴大協議，這是我們未來成功的關鍵驅動力。我們的歐洲種子處理業務預計上半年將成長近一倍。 Takla 的推出以及對 UBP 種子處理劑的需求增加將在一定程度上推動這一成長。同樣，與 Rizobacter 不斷發展的關係將繼續成為我們在拉丁美洲市場擴張的基石。

Additionally, our international foliar crop protection sales are expected to grow by more than 40% for the full year driven by demand-generating activities in the field, additional boots on the ground and solid channel partnerships in Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Central America.

此外，在實地需求創造活動、實地額外啟動以及巴西、智利、墨西哥和中美洲穩固的通路合作夥伴關係的推動下，我們的國際葉面作物保護銷售額全年預計將增長 40% 以上。

We're anticipating significant revenue synergies through our combination with Bioceres, and both companies are bringing important new products into the market in the next few years. As you likely know, Bioceres recently received clearance for the import of its HB4 drought tolerant soybeans into China, a major milestone in opening the door for the planting of these seeds in the top soybean growing regions in the world. The combination of our soybean treatments and Bioceres' HB4 drought tolerant gene will be an exciting offering to take to our channel partners and growers in the future.

我們預計透過與 Bioceres 的合併將產生顯著的收入綜效，兩家公司都將在未來幾年內將重要的新產品推向市場。如您所知，Bioceres 最近獲得了將其 HB4 耐旱大豆進口到中國的許可，這是為在世界頂級大豆種植區種植這些種子打開大門的一個重要里程碑。我們的大豆處理劑與 Bioceres 的 HB4 耐旱基因的結合將在未來為我們的通路合作夥伴和種植者帶來令人興奮的產品。

From a manufacturing perspective, the capital investment in our Michigan facility has allowed us to ramp up production to meet anticipated demand in 2022 and beyond. We've been able to service our customers without disruption during what continues to be a trying period for supply chains across all industries, not just agriculture. Our R&D pipeline continues to progress, and we are focused on advancing the regulatory packages for our novel bioinsecticide/bionematicide products, MBI-306 in the United States and MBI-206 in Brazil. Pending regulatory approvals, our forecast is that we may launch both of these in the second half of 2023.

從製造角度來看，我們密西根工廠的資本投資使我們能夠提高產量，以滿足 2022 年及以後的預期需求。在所有行業（而不僅僅是農業）的供應鏈仍然處於艱難時期的情況下，我們能夠在不中斷的情況下為客戶提供服務。我們的研發管線不斷取得進展，我們專注於推進我們的新型生物殺蟲劑/生物殺線劑產品（美國的 MBI-306 和巴西的 MBI-206）的監管方案。在等待監管部門批准之前，我們預測我們可能會在 2023 年下半年推出這兩項服務。

Our bioherbicide platform is a key research program and a significant part of the value proposition we bring to our merger with Bioceres. All of our candidates are progressing in line with our expectations. We anticipate we could have a commercial launch of our MBI-007 herbicide in 2025, with additional products coming to the market in the next several years thereafter. Recent decisions by the U.S. EPA regarding herbicide safety underscore the importance of bringing growers new wheat control options to support their operations.

我們的生物除草劑平台是一個關鍵研究項目，也是我們與 Bioceres 合併帶來的價值主張的重要組成部分。我們所有候選人的進展都符合我們的預期。我們預計我們的 MBI-007 除草劑可能會在 2025 年商業化推出，更多產品將在未來幾年內推向市場。美國環保署最近關於除草劑安全的決定強調了為種植者提供新的小麥控制方案以支持其運作的重要性。

Of course, completing the Bioceres transaction is top of the list of 2022. Bioceres filed the initial F-4 registration statement this week, which contains a preliminary proxy statement prospectus and provides further detail on the proposed transaction.

當然，完成 Bioceres 交易是 2022 年的首要任務。

To summarize our outlook for the year, we anticipate first half revenues will increase in the low to mid-teens percent based on growth in historically larger second quarter. We expect to maintain annual margins in the upper 50% range, and ongoing expenses are budgeted to remain flat plus inflation. All of this should create a strong platform for the next wave of growth that we perceive through our combination with Bioceres and our ability to further leverage our unique portfolio worldwide.

總結我們對今年的展望，我們預計上半年營收將在歷史上較大的第二季成長的基礎上以百分之十幾至百分之十的速度成長。我們預計年利潤率將保持在 50% 以上的範圍內，並且持續支出預算將保持不變（加上通貨膨脹）。所有這一切都將為我們透過與 Bioceres 的合併以及進一步利用我們在全球範圍內獨特的投資組合的能力所感知的下一波增長創造一個強大的平台。

I'd like to turn the call over to the operator now for your questions.

我現在想將電話轉給接線員詢問您的問題。

(Operator Instructions) We have the Dmitry Silversteyn from Water Tower Research.

（操作員說明）我們有來自 Water Tower Research 的 Dmitry Silversteyn。

I'd just like to follow up quickly on a statement that you made regarding Latin American business expectations for the second quarter. You talked about the drought conditions in the region, but you are talking about having a still strong Latin American business. So can you provide a little bit more granularity on what's driving your conviction in the strength of the business or which markets are offsetting the drought impact of these regions and crops?

我想快速跟進您關於第二季度拉丁美洲商業預期的聲明。您談到了該地區的乾旱狀況，但您談論的是仍然強勁的拉丁美洲業務。那麼，您能否更詳細地說明是什麼推動了您對業務實力的信念，或者哪些市場正在抵消這些地區和農作物的乾旱影響？

Yes. Thank you, Dmitry, for your question. I have Matti Tiainen with me, our SVP of International Sales. And I'll hand it over to Matti to give you some more color there.

是的。謝謝德米特里的提問。我身邊有我們的國際銷售資深副總裁 Matti Tiainen。我會將其交給 Matti，以便為您提供更多顏色。

Thanks, Kevin, and thanks, Dmitry, for the question. You're right. I mean the South American drought and also the fertilizer prices are, of course, putting the farmers in a situation where they are thinking what to do and how to manage their crops. But our products that we're now rolling out and what we launched last year in the market are really key to the farmers' decisions because we have our foliar fertilizers, our specialty fertilizers, rolling out to the market. And these are specifically for managing abiotic stress. But these products also have a big impact on nutrient use efficiency and nutrient uptake on the plants. So they basically serve both of the downfalls. One is the stress that the plants are facing and then also helping out with the nutrient use efficiency. So that is why we expect a stronger demand, and we've already seen that in the marketplace.

謝謝凱文，也謝謝德米特里提出的問題。你說得對。我的意思是，南美的乾旱和化肥價格當然讓農民陷入了思考該做什麼以及如何管理農作物的情況。但我們現在推出的產品以及去年在市場上推出的產品對於農民的決策確實至關重要，因為我們的葉面肥、特殊肥料正在推向市場。這些是專門用於管理非生物脅迫的。但這些產品也對植物的養分利用效率和養分吸收產生很大影響。所以他們基本上解決了這兩個問題。一是植物面臨的壓力，也有助於提高養分利用效率。這就是為什麼我們預計會有更強勁的需求，而且我們已經在市場上看到了這一點。

Okay. That's helpful. And then I just want to make sure, on the fourth quarter earnings call, you talked about double-digit or low double-digit growth in first half revenues year-over-year. Now you're talking about low to mid-teens growth. First of all, am I correct that it is sort of an acceleration in your growth expectations? And secondly, is the customer replenishing faster inventories in the U.S.? Is it new products or product going in different markets and regions? What's changed that you're now seeing faster growth in the second quarter versus your original expectations?

好的。這很有幫助。然後我想確保，在第四季度的財報電話會議上，您談到了上半年收入同比的兩位數或低兩位數增長。現在你談論的是青少年低至中等的成長。首先，我認為這在某種程度上加速了您的成長預期，對嗎？其次，客戶在美國的庫存補充速度是否更快？是新產品還是不同市場地區的產品？您現在看到第二季的成長速度比您最初的預期更快，發生了什麼變化？

Yes. Dmitry, it's Kevin here. So as you can imagine, we are constantly looking at our business and assessing the needs of our customers, looking at market demand and all factors influencing the current crop year. What I'm going to do is hand it over to Kamal, our Head of Global Marketing, to talk about how we're seeing the second quarter and the first half overall.

是的。德米特里，我是凱文。正如您可以想像的那樣，我們不斷關注我們的業務並評估客戶的需求，研究市場需求和影響當前作物年份的所有因素。我要做的就是將其交給我們的全球行銷主管 Kamal，談談我們對第二季和上半年的整體看法。

Yes. Thank you, Kevin, and thank you, Dmitry. So basically, as we move into the second quarter, we'll see a lot more demand for our insecticide and nematicide products. Historically, we've been very strong on those offers. And as we move on to the season, of course, a lot more territories will open up in the U.S. So basically, we'll be talking about the Midwest, we'll be talking about the Carolinas, we'll be talking about the Northeast, where our products are really well accepted. So that gives us a strong indication about how much growth we can have.

是的。謝謝你，凱文，謝謝你，德米特里。因此，基本上，當我們進入第二季度時，我們將看到對我們的殺蟲劑和殺線蟲劑產品的需求大幅增加。從歷史上看，我們對這些優惠一直非常強烈。當然，隨著季節的推移，美國將會開放更多的地區。 所以基本上，我們將討論中西部，我們將討論卡羅來納州，我們將討論東北，我們的產品在那裡很受歡迎。因此，這為我們提供了一個強有力的跡象，表明我們可以實現多少成長。

Basically, there's a lot of discussions, of course, with our channel partners, and we also monitor very closely, ourselves directly to the growers, so basically the pull-through that our distributors are doing. And so far, we've seen single-digit growth in terms of those sales to the growers. So that gives us a lot of indication here in the U.S., in [planting] in particular. And as we open up in other territories as well, we should see that growth being materialized in the second quarter.

基本上，當然，與我們的通路合作夥伴進行了很多討論，我們也直接對種植者進行了非常密切的監控，所以基本上是我們的經銷商正在做的拉動。到目前為止，我們看到種植者的銷售額出現了個位數成長。這給我們在美國提供了很多指示，特別是在[種植]方面。隨著我們在其他地區的開放，我們應該會看到第二季度成長。

Okay. That's helpful. And then final question, if I may. You talked about North America and Latin America. Anything going on in Europe besides the war in Ukraine that is affecting your product sales there either in a positive or a negative way? And what are the conditions there like in terms of farmers' ability to pay up given an increase in pricing that everybody is seeing?

好的。這很有幫助。最後一個問題，可以的話。您談到了北美和拉丁美洲。除了烏克蘭戰爭之外，歐洲發生的任何事情對你們的產品銷售產生正面或負面的影響？鑑於每個人都看到價格上漲，農民的支付能力如何？

Yes. Dmitry, it's Kevin. Of course, there's a lot of news in Europe right now, both positive and challenging, let's say. We do have a lot of good things going on in our business driven by our Pro Farm team. Matti, I'll hand over to you to expand on that.

是的。德米特里，是凱文。當然，目前歐洲有很多消息，其中既有積極的，也有挑戰性的。在 Pro Farm 團隊的推動下，我們的業務確實發生了許多好事。 Matti，我將交給你來詳細闡述這一點。

Yes. Thanks. Thanks, Dmitry, again for the question. Of course, our hearts go to the Ukraine and supporting all of our colleagues and partners there to overcome the situation. In Europe, otherwise, we see it's a difficult situation for the farmers. At the same time, grain prices are almost record high depending on the crop, and farmers are thinking what to plant and when to plant. But I think that our advantages in Europe and in other places as well is that a lot of our business is on the seed. So seed is the one that gets less affected by the turbulence of the markets. Farmers need to seed and they know which genetics they rely on.

是的。謝謝。再次感謝德米特里提出的問題。當然，我們的心與烏克蘭同在，並支持那裡的所有同事和合作夥伴克服當前局勢。另一方面，在歐洲，我們看到農民的處境很困難。同時，根據農作物的不同，糧食價格幾乎創下歷史新高，農民正在考慮種植什麼以及何時種植。但我認為我們在歐洲和其他地方的優勢在於我們的許多業務都處於萌芽階段。因此，種子是受市場動盪影響較小的一種。農民需要播種，他們知道他們依賴哪種遺傳學。

The other thing is that in Europe we signed a contract for our foliar product, our foliar specialty fertilizer, with Corteva in Europe. And this is also a stress management tool and nutrient use efficiency tool. So I think that, again, with our foliar fertilizer and plant health line, we're addressing the problems that the farmers are having. And at the same time, on the seed side, we're also addressing similar problems, but we are tied to the seed which is less affected to the actual turbulence. So I would say that it's a positive scenario. And we're seeing an uptake in Europe and the business is increasing. So there's good in it. But of course, the situation in Ukraine is something that we, as everybody else, are very sorry about.

另一件事是，在歐洲，我們與歐洲的 Corteva 簽署了葉面產品、葉面特殊肥料的合約。這也是一種壓力管理工具和營養素利用效率工具。因此，我認為，透過我們的葉面肥料和植物健康系列，我們正在解決農民面臨的問題。同時，在種子方面，我們也在解決類似的問題，但我們與種子連結在一起，而種子受實際湍流的影響​​較小。所以我想說這是一個積極的情況。我們看到歐洲的使用率和業務正在成長。所以這裡面有好處。當然，我們和其他人一樣，對烏克蘭的局勢感到非常遺憾。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員說明）

Okay, operator, I think that concludes our Q&A session. So everybody on the call, thank you again for your time. We appreciate your continued interest in Marrone Bio as we transition to become part of a larger global operation with the type of diversification and expanded product offerings that we will drive our growth and profitability. We believe our first half demonstrates the value we likewise bring to Bioceres with a world-class offering of unique, sustainable solutions for the ever-evolving needs of growers.

好的，接線生，我想我們的問答環節就到此結束了。再次感謝大家抽出寶貴的時間。我們感謝您對 Marrone Bio 的持續關注，因為我們正在轉型成為更大的全球業務的一部分，其多元化和擴大的產品供應將推動我們的成長和獲利。我們相信，我們的上半年展示了我們同樣為 Bioceres 帶來的價值，為滿足種植者不斷變化的需求提供世界一流的獨特、可持續的解決方案。

Thank you again, and we look forward to speaking with you in the coming months.

再次感謝您，我們期待在未來幾個月與您交談。

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, this concludes today's conference. Thank you for your participation. You may now disconnect.

謝謝。女士們、先生們，今天的會議到此結束。感謝您的參與。您現在可以斷開連線。