DENMARK: Danisco expects to “break even”

By: just-food.com | 19 March 2009

Danish food ingredients company Danisco posted a significant drop in profit for the nine-months to date, but said it expects to break even for the full year.

CEO Tom Knutzen said the company has "felt the impact" of the current economic downturn and is suffering from "lower short-term earnings visibility".

Knutzen said this has led to initiatives, including staff reductions, a salary freeze for 2009 and hiring restrictions across the organisation, as it acts "swiftly" to defend its short-term profitability.

Danisco posted a pre-tax profit for the nine months to 31 January of DKK177m (US$32m) compared to DKK987m for the comparable period in 2007.

Operating profit before special items (EBIT) also dropped, falling to DKK931m from DKK1.18bn in the previous year.

Sales for the nine months however, rose 6% to DKK9.7bn from DKK9.1bn in the year-ago period.

Danisco maintained its forecast of fiscal full-year revenue of around DKK13bn and operating profit of around DKK1.15bn.

Sectors: Commodities & ingredients

Companies: Danisco