After a what the company described as a “difficult” first year, Arla Foods has said that sales at its Lebanese joint venture Arla Kalassi Foods have got off to a good start in 2007.
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Last year, the group’s performance was firstly held-back by the boycott of Danish goods that swept the Middle East and resulted in a dramatic decline in sales. When the boycott ended, a new crisis began: the war between Israel and Hezbollah. Once the smoke had cleared, Arla Kalassi was met with the challenge of a severely damaged infra-structure, that put limitations on distribution and hampered new product launches and sales growth, the company said.
“Not until September 2006 could we begin to look ahead and plan our strategy,” said Rasmus M. Kjeldsen, head of the joint venture company.
Commenting on the company’s year-to-date performance, Kjeldsen said: “Currently, we are 16% above budget. The positive trend more or less covers all products and all regions. We’re enjoying a real boost and we are all proud of what we’ve achieved after the first year, which was extremely tough.”
Arla Kalassi is now aiming to further increase its sales and launch new products, laying the groundwork for further growth. A low-fat variety of Puck processed cheese designed to meet the strong demand in Lebanon for “lighter” products is among the pending product launches, the company said.
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