John West parent Thai Union has reported a 8.6% increase in sales in the second quarter of its financial year, boosted by the "diversification of our business," according to CEO Thiraphong Chansiri.
Sales came in at THB 35.9 billion (€910 million) for the period, while new profit was 36.5% higher, at THB 2.34 billion (€60 million).
The group said that the return of family gatherings and dining out during the quarter helped lift its foodservice and retail businesses in the US during the quarter, as well as in parts of Europe.
Ambient Seafood Declines
However, its ambient seafood business, which includes John West, King Oscar and Chicken Of The Sea, saw a 6.8% decline in the quarter, due to tough comparatives with the corresponding period last year.
Looking at the first half of 2021, sales grew 4.4% to THB 67 billion (€1.7 billion), with net profit rising 51.7% to THB 4.1 billion, the group said.
“The diversification in our business in terms of geographical markets, product categories and source of revenues is a key contributor to our strong performance in this quarter, and we continue to focus on profitability, financial disciplines and new, value-enhancing businesses,” said Thiraphong Chansiri, CEO at Thai Union Group.
“While demand in our ambient business returned to more normalised levels, our frozen and chilled seafood business recovered strongly on the back of the return to pre-COVID activities in certain core markets."
Further Acquisitions
The group has continued its acquisition drive in recent months, with the purchase of the remaining 49% of the shares in Rügen Fisch AG, a German seafood supplier, as well as investment in biotechnology firm ViAqua, and cell-cultivated food firms BlueNalu and Aleph Farms.
“We want to give our customers as many options as possible to help them make choices that enable healthy living and support healthy oceans," Chansiri added. "Alternative proteins produce less carbon emission and are an important part of our diets globally and therefore to Thai Union’s business."
© 2021 European Supermarket Magazine. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. For more A-Brands news, click here. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
