The company, whose brands include Cathedral City, Country Life and Clover, said underlying pre-tax profits rose 5% to £40.1m for the six months to 30 September. Strong demand for cheese, up 58% to £12.5m, helped compensate for the impact of a weaker performance in the group’s dairies.
Efficiency savings coupled with higher selling prices also boosted results in the face of growing input costs, with profits increasing despite a 3% drop in revenues. Sales at the group’s key brands rose 5% compared to the previous year, helped by a promotional drive and targeted advertising.
Chief executive Mark Allen said: “Dairy Crest has enjoyed another good six months. In line with our strategy, we have continued to grow our brands, reduce our costs and control our debt. At the same time the improvements we have made to our quality, service and cost base have paid off with new contracts to supply fresh milk to major retailers.
“Our strategy has proved successful in the challenging economic environment and positions us to deliver further value going forward. With operational efficiencies and selling price increases in certain categories limiting the impact of higher input costs, we are confident that we can continue to deliver profits in line with our expectations.”
Source: Dairy Crest
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