Miguel de Souza Gularte: Good morning, Isabella. I think that the first aspect, in fact, the leverage decreased at levels that we hadn’t observed as it was put at the beginning of the conference at least eight years. This doesn’t change the focus of the organization of continuing and persistent very energetically on reducing our gross debt. Our intention is to continue to advance on rates and go back to being a company evaluated as investment degree. And it’s natural all the deleveraging process as we have a readjustment of the capital structure that we can have opportunities and possibilities for investment. Specifically, talking about CapEx, we still have opportunities of growth for the company with investments, marginal investments.
This brings a message of idle. We don’t have the full occupancy of our plant footprint. So this year, very much likely, we should grow the levels of CapEx that we have observed — we observed last year. I mean in general, that would be, it hasn’t changed in comparison to this trajectory. On liability side, it’s important to highlight that we’re going to be very attentive and paying very close attention. Although we don’t have concentration of that maturity dates on 2024. We’re going to pay attention to the possibilities, that the marketing offers liability management and exchange liability so we can reduce the debt costs and favor this process that I have tried to convey here to you.
Isabella Simonato: That’s super clear. If you could, just emphasize the point of dividend of the buyback, the idea we can think of a minimum dividend, or is there the possibility of a higher return on funds to the shareholders?
Miguel de Souza Gularte: Good morning, Isabella. Here we are working here at a company, that’s very hard and diligently to improve the results, investments depending on the controller decision, for the strategy of the company.
Isabella Simonato: Okay. Great. Thank you.
Operator: Our next question is from Ricardo Boiati, Safra. Please Ricardo, your microphone is open.
Ricardo Boiati: Good morning, Miguel, Fabio, and other attendees. Congratulations for the excellent quarter. Two questions from my side. The first one about international market, more specifically about China. If you could comment a little bit more how you have seen the offer dynamics and demand dynamics in the Chinese market, talking a little bit about chicken meat and pork meat. So we can understand a little bit as how to think of this market, this major market in international operations for you. I think that Halal is also well understood with very favorable. But I’d like to understand a little bit more about Asia and specifically about China. And the second question is about the situation in Rio Grande do Sul. If you could comment with a little bit more details what you have noticed in terms of impact, not only in your operation directly, in your plants, production of the company, but also in integrated chicken farms and partners of the company.
And also, logistically speaking, I think that this is a very important relevant point, the capability of feeding the plants and poultry farms and delivering the production. We have the strike of the truck drivers that generated a logistic discussion that was really relevant at the national scale. But I would like to understand what the situation is like in terms of logistics, the current situation. You have been able to deliver and flow this production outside the plants, and this has happened to your partners as well, integrated or affiliates. So we want to know if this situation may complicate the logistic, doesn’t solve over the next coming weeks. Thank you.
Miguel de Souza Gularte: Ricardo, answering your question about Asia and China, I think it’s interesting to observe the CSECS data if we compare the first quarter of 2023 in Asia, China, a 153 tons from China from 2023. 62,000 went to China. If we look at the same number in 2024, a 153,000 of chicken, in this case, poultry. And China, 39,000 around that. So if we compare data for poultry, we’re going to see that Asia and Brazilian expectation in the first quarter of 2023, out of 400,000 tons, a 153 since that’s 2023. Now 2024, looking at the same picture, we’re going to find Asia with 125,000, a 147,000. Here, we have clearly a displacement of performance for exportation in Asia. So Asia, specifically China, continue to be a relevant destination for Brazilian exportations.
We noticed in the case of poultry, a recovery of price in the first quarter. This recovery, regardless of the intensity and the magnitude, it is happening. And in regards to pork, we have a more balanced situation, but we also see pork performing, going back to a level that is more normal in terms of price. Obviously, when you have 66 new licenses, in our case in 2023, in 20 plus, and two more today, also for pork in the case of China. We license for Philippines, two plants for the Philippines today. So we have options of — we have choices. The straight off is normal for destinations. You can have this cherry picked for destinations, both for poultry and pork. In regards to Rio Grande do Sul, a state in the south of Brazil, the first thing that we would like to say, we would like to sympathize for the inhabitants of Rio Grande do Sul.
So almost 10,000 employees and 2,000 integrated employees, BRF since the beginning was concerned of an extremely valuable to us, our people and our integrated people in the whole community we are inserted in. So we opened on Friday a campaign to, raise fundraising for each real raised in this campaign. The BRF Institute raised R$1. The Murphy placed one more real, BRF, one more real. So each real raised by the Murphy, again, BRF turned into R$3. And from Friday to today, over R$3 million. And you saw that in the opening of our call. We placed in the page the call to the result of the fourth — the first quarter of 2024. We have the card for the no for donations. This is going to be in our website. So all donations are welcome. Each donation made through this tool generates one extra Rio and one extra Rio reported by Marfrig and one real from BRF said that.
Talking about from the operational standpoint, our plants we have five plants in Rio Grande Do Sul. And these five plants, four of them went back to operation on Monday, and the fifth plant will go — went back to operation yesterday. From the logistics standpoint, obviously, the challenges are big. We were able to get to the plants and also flow the output and production. So you are covering longer distances now. You have challenges that we have to face under the situation. But we are very much focused, so everything is done safely and keeping very close to our employees. We are always close to them. We worked Friday, Saturday, Sunday. First step of making contacts with our employees on Sunday morning. We had contacted already directly over 95% of our employees.
A proof that we’re really proud of the engagement of our people, our personnel, is that we had, from the standpoint of absenteeism. We had the presence the industrial occupancy, we had lower absenteeism than the average levels. People understanding the importance of production of food production in this moment. So everybody that that was present and allowed us to operate. Now we have our commitment, not only in solidarity, but also our commitment to help to mitigate the damage in the whole chain. BRF is a company that has a tradition of integration and relationship with the employees. Obviously, the evaluation that is more accurate about damage and the consequences that may have happened are still undergoing. And as a very recent fact, we still have some difficulties of finding information, because of a power failure, telephone failure.
So we are all the areas in [indiscernible]. So we’re in order to support and not only those the integrated parties, but their families. We dedicated time advancing. We are increasing this contact and support. We are very confident in our tradition for integration and relationship. And even more, the mandate that was given from the controller and the council, given all the necessary support in this difficult moment, we understand that it’s important that BRF behaves as a company that is relevant and the importance it has according to that.
Ricardo Boiati: Very clear, Miguel. Thank you. Again, congratulations.
Operator: Our next question is from Renata Cabral from Citibank. Renata, your microphone is already open.
Renata Cabral: Good morning, everybody. Thank you for taking my questions. Good morning, Miguel, Fabio. Jeez, congratulations to all of you for the results. I have two questions. One is a follow-up in regards to CapEx. You commented that about having the growth with CapEx levels with the same level from last year. My question is about what to expect for 2025 in terms of maintenance. If you are expecting to have the factories need possibly additional maintenance after going through in the past, more critical period in terms of cash generation. Obviously, the company now is at in another level. Just to understand this question. And my second question is about capability in the industry in 2023, specifically for poultry. It was the post pandemic period for the industry in general had oversupply, and we had this normalization throughout the year last year.
And now that we are in a positive cycle in terms of, raw material prices. I would like to hear from you if you observed an increase in capacity, and this is aligned with you what you expect and your view over this topic?
Fabio Luis Mendes Mariano: Good morning, Renata. I’m going to start by the first question about CapEx. And I would like to make it clear that any situation of the company or in any occasion, we kept assets at very bad very good conditions of operation regardless of the situation. This has always happened. The investments have always been allocated in a way that the footprint could respond to growth and production plants that we had. What is correct, we intend this year to have investments at the levels of investments presented last year. We have plans of growth for this year and the view over investments for 2025 will depend on this performance. As so, if we understand that the growth speeds up in terms of execution, then in 2025, we will have to reinforce investments and capabilities.
So this would be a scenario that would be very positive. So we could anticipate and dedicate resources to increase our possibilities of production. In regards to capacity of the industry, your second question, I’m going to hand over to Miguel.
