Arla Foods said its foodservice sales in the European dairy group’s home market of Denmark rose 30% in the past two weeks as canteens, restaurants and cafes began to reopen having been shutdown to curb the spread of Covid-19.

Denmark’s foodservice sector had effectively been in lockdown since the government imposed control measures on 11 March, according to Arla, which said data from its Arla Pro division are “finally indicating positive trends again”.

Jesper Vanghøj, the marketing manager at Arla Pro, said in a statement today (5 June): “We can see that things are starting to go in the right direction. Last week’s sales show a doubling compared to the week back in March when the crisis was worst. So there is progress to be made, and it is very positive that more and more of our customers have begun to reopen.

“Although there are positive beats, it does not mean that everything is back to normal yet. Our focus is therefore on helping our customers recover well in an industry that has been and continues to be hit hard. “