Bakkavor: UK continues to ‘outperform the market’

It revealed this was driven by strong service, breadth of product range and targeted innovation. 

In its audited results for the 53 weeks ended 31 December 2022 Bakkavor also said early trading in 2023  was “encouraging.” It also revealed that UK volumes were in line with expectations, despite recent fresh produce availability challenges.  

Inflation

Like-for-like revenue ​for the whole company exceeded £2bn, up 10.6%, with growth led by price and US volume.  It said adjusted operating profit of £89.4m was in line with market expectations. Whilst inflation was largely mitigated through pricing and self-help measures, but profits were down £12.6m.

“2022 has been a year of challenge and disruption. Despite this difficult environment, I am pleased with the robust financial performance, strong operational delivery and the agile response demonstrated by our teams, which has underpinned this delivery. I would like to thank the entire team for their ongoing commitment and relentless energy in dealing with the challenges that we faced through the year,” ​said ​​Mike Edwards, ceo.

Protect profits

“The decisive action we have taken to protect profits – to restructure our operations, re-focus our regional priorities and be more targeted in our investment – combined with our strong balance sheet, provide us with a stronger platform to move forward with purpose and confidence."​

The news comes as Premier Foods unveiled a profits upgrade in a trading update. It said that Q3 sales were up 12% compared to the previous year, with grocery sales up 17.4%. However, Alex Whitehouse, chief executive officer, revealed that inflation remains at “elevated levels”​ and the company was continuing to offset inflation through a range of measures.