A leading cheese company has blamed rising costs for a 92% drop in pre-tax profits.
The latest accounts for Lactalis McLelland, which produces cheeses including Orkney cheddar and Seriously cheddar, reveal pre-tax profits of £575,000 for the year ended December 31 2019 – down from £6.85 million previously.
The accounts, filed with Companies House, also reveal a slight increase in turnover to £223.4m, from £223.1m before.
Sales within the UK reduced to £195.26m, from £203.9m the year before, while sales to Europe were up 41% to £26.086m and sales to the rest of the world increased by 219% to just over £2m.
“This year’s profit before taxation was impacted by higher cost of sales, which increased by 4% over the previous year while turnover remained the same,” said Lactalis.
“The business has continued to support the development of its main brands with advertising and promotional investment during the year.
“Our main cheddar and continental brands performed well delivering category growth throughout the year.”
It said the impact of Covid-19 on the company had not been significant and demand for its products among domestic consumers had remained strong throughout the pandemic.
“The management team are monitoring the operational situation regularly and have contingency plans in place should an outbreak occur in a facility,” said the firm.