Adecoagro S.A. (NYSE: AGRO) reported record consolidated adjusted EBITDA of $172.5 million for the second quarter ended June 30, 2026, and $258.3 million for the first half of the year, as stronger urea output and higher cane crushing volumes offset softness in its food and agriculture operations.
The Numbers
The Luxembourg-based South American agribusiness operator — which produces fertilizers, sugarcane-derived ethanol, and agricultural commodities across Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay — drove the outperformance primarily through its Fertilizers segment. Pro forma adjusted EBITDA for that division reached $121.2 million in Q2 2026 and $173.8 million in the first half, representing year-over-year increases of 109.7% and 148.5%, respectively, assuming the Profertil acquisition had closed on January 1, 2025. Urea production climbed 21.6% versus the second quarter of 2025, bringing year-to-date output to 617 thousand tons — up 15.9% from the same period last year. Average urea prices averaged $699 per ton in Q2 2026 and $620 per ton year-to-date, compared with $444 per ton in full-year 2025. On a pro forma basis, net debt to last-twelve-months adjusted EBITDA fell to 3.0x from 3.2x in Q1 2026, reflecting the EBITDA expansion despite normal working-capital seasonality.
Sugar, Ethanol & Energy
Adecoagro's Sugar, Ethanol & Energy segment — of direct relevance to global food ingredient and biofuel supply chains — generated adjusted EBITDA of $53.2 million in Q2 2026 and $93.8 million in the first half, declines of 21.8% and 4.2% year-over-year, respectively. Crushing volumes rose 2.8% to 3.5 million tons in the quarter and jumped 16.8% to 5.8 million tons in the half, underpinned by better cane yields of 83 tonnes per hectare. Management prioritized ethanol production at a 78% mix in the first half to capture wider margins versus sugar, deliberately building inventories — 41% of year-to-date ethanol production remains stored — in anticipation of higher spot prices. Sugar realizations weighed on revenue: production cost stood at 10.4 cents per pound versus 9.0 cents per pound in the first half of 2025, a gap attributable entirely to Brazilian real appreciation; in local-currency terms, costs were flat. The company has hedged 75% of its 2026 sugar production at 15.7 cents per pound and 16% of next year's crop at 17.4 cents per pound, providing downside protection amid commodity volatility that matters across sweetener-dependent food and beverage manufacturing. Urea prices, which peaked near $800 per ton in April partly on Middle East supply concerns, have since retreated; CFR Brazil was trading at approximately $480 per ton at the time of the release. Management nonetheless guided for full-year 2026 fertilizer adjusted EBITDA to exceed prior years, citing the stronger first-half price capture. For the sugar and ethanol operations, the company expects low-double-digit growth in full-year crushing versus 2025, assuming normal weather conditions — a figure that would bolster both ethanol supply to Brazilian fuel blenders and sugar availability to regional food processors.
Outlook
The Food & Agriculture segment, which encompasses grain farming and dairy processing, delivered adjusted EBITDA of $4.9 million in Q2 2026 versus $1.1 million a year earlier, though the first-half figure of $6.2 million came in 64.9% below the prior-year period, pressured by commodity price declines of 3% to 43% across most products and higher dollar-denominated costs. Management expects margins to improve as the 2025/26 harvest is commercialized in coming quarters. The deleveraging trajectory and record EBITDA performance position Adecoagro as a strengthening supplier across the agricultural inputs, sweetener, and biofuel value chains — sectors with direct implications for food and beverage manufacturers reliant on Brazilian sugar and ethanol and fertilizer buyers navigating post-Profertil market consolidation.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
