Northern Foods, the manufacturer of Goodfella’s pizza and Fox’s biscuits, posted a 1.6% decrease in like-for-like sales for its first quarter, on the back of a 25% drop in revenues from frozen food.
The UK food group attributed the 24.9% fall in frozen like-for-like sales during the 13 weeks to 3 July to the impact of exiting a Birds Eye co-pack contract in 2009.
Go deeper with GlobalData
The company also invested heavily in its Goodfella’s pizza brand with the transition to a new brand, new recipes and new packaging.
Bakery like-for-like sales were down 5.6% due to its decision to reduce promotional activity this quarter due to the football World Cup.
Northern said normal promotional activity will continue in the second quarter and margins remain strong.
Northern Foods said its investment in new automated technology within Fox’s Biscuits is progressing well and is expected to be completed early in its 2011/12 financial year.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataThe company’s chilled division grew underlying revenues by 14.3% due to a strong performance in sandwiches and salads.
Northern said its ready-meals business showed “continued steady improvement” in the quarter.
“Our financial position remains strong. Net debt is lower than the prior year quarter, whilst increasing modestly from the year end to reflect the start of seasonal working capital build and our investments in the business,” the company added.
