FDBusiness.com

Operational efficiencies and selling price increases have allowed Dairy Crest to broadly offset higher input costs during its first half trading period ending September 30th 2011. Trading has been in line with expectations and higher property profits will result in overall profits for the first half being slightly ahead of the same period last year.

The broad based UK dairy group is continuing with its successful strategy to build added value sales and make efficiency improvements across the business. Despite the pressure on consumers’ disposable incomes, sales of its five key brands (Cathedral City, Country Life, Clover, St Hubert Omega 3 and Frijj) in total have continued to increase, although volumes of these brands will be lower than in the same period last year.

Mark Allen, chief executive of Dairy Crest.

Innovation remains an important part of group strategy and Dairy Crest has completed the development of four exciting new products during the period. In the UK it has launched ‘Chedds’, a range of three new children’s cheese snacks and ‘The Incredible’, three new premium flavours for its branded milk shake Frijj. In France Dairy Crest has launched a newSt Hubert non-dairy cream and is about to launch a new spread that contains seeds.

Mark Allen, chief executive of Dairy Crest, comments: “In the first half our broad base, high quality brands and ongoing cost saving measures have allowed us to balance the conflicting demands of increased input costs and subdued consumer spending. At the same time we are investing for the future, with new products and upgraded facilities. Overall we remain confident of delivering full year profits in line with our expectations.”