US produce group Chiquita Brands International has posted flat profits for fiscal 2011 but said it plans to expand its Fresh Express business this year by growing its organic business.
For the 12 months to the end of December, profits were unmoved at US$57m. Operating profit in the period, however, slid 68.5% to $34m due to costs linked to the relocation of its head office, as well as lower revenue.
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Sales were 2.5% lower at $2.69bn on lower sales in Chiquita’s salads and healthy snacks division and from other produce. This was partially offset by higher banana sales.
Chiquita’s financial performance was better in the fourth quarter of 2011. It narrowed its net losses to $16m from a net loss of $20m in the prior-year period. The company’s operating losses fell to $12m from $13m last year on the back of a 6.6% increase in sales to $722m.
“We delivered a fourth consecutive year of comparable profitability, improving our results over last year, particularly in the fourth quarter, which benefited from our efforts to drive down costs as well as from the refinancing activities we completed earlier in the year,” said Chiquita chairman and CEO Fernando Aguirre.
“We had a much better year in bananas driven by higher pricing and volume in North America, and initial recovery in Europe. Our salads business did not perform as well as expected and we’ve taken a number of corrective actions and adapted our structure and strategy to be more successful and profitable.”
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By GlobalDataAguirre said Chiquita plans to be more active in the broader $5bn salad category in 2012, not just in bagged salads, and therefore has plans to expand into head lettuce and to grow its organic business.
“Going forward we are focused on growing revenues and profitability in core banana and salads products, using our existing capacity and capabilities to enter new markets and providing a more comprehensive product offering. We are looking forward to another year of progress in improving the foundations of our business and its long-term profitability.”
In an additional announcement, Chiquita CFO Michael Sims has resigned to join AdvancePierre Foods. Chqiuita has named company executive Brian Kocher as his successor.
