Food manufacturer Cerealto has seen its turnover nearly double in 2017, to €160 million, according to its 2017 annual report.
The company, which specialises in private-label products, increased sales by 72% over its 2016 year-end figure.
The largest percentage of sales were seen in the Southern Europe region, with the most profitable category being biscuits (with a 41% share across categories).
It achieved a production volume of 111,000 tonnes (an increase of 50%) and hired more than 900 new staff members, for a total of 1,800 employees.
The company sunk more than €45 million into investment in order to expand production capacity and improve technology and efficiency.
In Spain, the company bought Grupo Siro’s factories in Antequera and Briviesca, facilitating production of its own pastries and sliced bread for the Spanish market.
In Italy, the company acquired Pastificio Mediterranea, which manufactures the Made in Italy pasta range, in 2017. It also completed construction on its Worksop factory in the UK, which produces biscuits, cereal bars, and gluten-free products.
Research And Innovation
The company focused on research and innovation last year, doubling its investment therein to €7.5 million. This resulted in 175 new products being brought to market, focusing on the healthy lifestyle trend.
Cerealto's CEO, Rut Aranda, commented on the results, saying, “2017 proved to be a very positive year for Cerealto. 2018 lies ahead as a year full of new challenges, including consolidating our presence in the international arena, paving the way to the company’s digitisation, fulfilling our commitments with clients, and, of course, continuing integrating our teams and standardising our ways of working."
In the coming year, the company forecasts the creation of 200 new jobs, mostly in Portugal and the UK, which will bring its total workforce to 2,000.
In 2017, Cerealto signed a syndicated loan for €80 million to finance its future international expansion plans.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Karen Henderson. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
