Pig farms, poultry and houmous: Cranswick profit rises after meaty investments pay off
Full-year profits at food producer Cranswick rose nearly a quarter to £176.6m as a string of investments in houmous, poultry and pig farming facilities paid off.
The firm, headquartered in Kingston upon Hull, reported revenue growth of 11.9 per cent to £2.6bn, while earnings per share jumped 15 per cent to 242.8p.
The rise in sales, despite macroeconomic headwinds such as inflation, was underpinned by 4.5 per cent volume growth in UK food, which accelerated through the second half of the year.
The bumper performance came after two meaty takeover deals of Elsham Linc and Froch Foods, totalling £46.1m, helped boost business.
Cranswick said Elscham Linc, an indoor pig farming business, had helped diversify the group’s operations, with self-sufficiency in UK pigs now over 50 per cent.
It has also invested £17.1m in significant expansions at its facilities in the North, part of a wider £112m project to boost capacity.
The work included building out its primary pork processing site in Hull, a £23m fit-out of a new houmous facility in Worsely, Manchester, and a £27m expansion of its poultry segments.
Adam Couch, Cranswick’s chief executive officer, said: “Our ongoing successful performance is down to the unwavering passion, commitment, and professionalism of our teams across the business.
“Our successful performance owes a great deal to the substantial investment we have put into enhancing our farming infrastructure and expanding our vertical integration.
“We have increased the size, scale and quality of our pig herds through ongoing organic growth and the acquisitions of new indoor and premium outdoor pigs.
“Over the last 12 months, we have strengthened our asset base, substantially expanded our farming operations, enhanced market positions and developed new customer relationships. We continue to make good progress against each of our strategic objectives and we are well placed to continue our successful development in the current financial year and over the longer term.”
Shares are up over 13 per cent in the year to date.