The Performance Nutrition arm of dairy giant Glanbia has posted a 'disappointing' like-for-like performance in the first nine months of the group's financial year, albeit offset by the recent acquisition of the SlimFast brand.
Like-for-like volumes at the division were down 7.9%, while pricing was down 1.4%.
SlimFast Boost
However, a 25.8% boost in revenues resulting from the acquisition of SlimFast meant that the division posted revenue growth of 16.5%.
Glanbia said that volume declines in the Performance Nutrition division primarily related to a 'continued challenging environment in some non-US markets', with Europe, the Middle East, Brazil and India experiencing 'headwinds'.
The group said that it is 'actively addressing' these issues, with the acceleration of a new direct-to-consumer platform in Europe, investment in the value chain in Brazil and India, and an assessment of the route to market in the Middle East and Brazil. A pricing increase was also implemented, in the third quarter.
The SlimFast brand posted a 'very strong performance' in the period, seeing pro forma like-for-like sales up 34.8%.
Glanbia Nutritionals
Elsewhere, Glanbia's Nutritionals business delivered revenue growth of 17.1% in the nine-month period, driven by a volume increase of 7.9% and a price increase of 5.7%. The acquisition of Watson delivered 3.5% revenue.
Within the Nutritionals arm, Nutritional Solutions, which produces protein solutions and functional beverages, saw a 25.4% increase in revenue in the nine-month period, while US Cheese saw revenue increase by 13.8%.
Glanbia's share of Joint Ventures meanwhile, saw revenue increase by 8.6%, driven by volume growth of 9.0%, however pricing saw a decline of 0.4%.
Overall, for the nine month period, revenues were up 16.9%, with volume up 2.4%, pricing up 3.2% and acquisitions adding 11.3% to its performance.
Revenue Increase
“Glanbia delivered 16.9% growth in wholly-owned revenues on a constant currency basis in the first nine months of 2019 versus prior year," commented Siobhan Talbot, Glanbia group managing director. "This was driven by a strong performance from Glanbia Nutritionals, as it meets demand from its global and regional customers for dairy and non-dairy solutions, as well as a good contribution from acquisitions.
"In GPN, while we are very pleased with the performance of the SlimFast acquisition, our like-for-like volume performance is disappointing. This is largely driven by specific challenges in key non-US markets. We are actively addressing the issues in these markets as they represent a compelling long-term growth opportunity for the Group."
© 2019 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
