Barry Callebaut: Further acceleration in volume growth

Zurich / CH. (bc) Barry Callebaut AG announced its key sales figures for the first nine months of fiscal year 2009/2010, ended May 31, 2010. Sales volume for the period under review came in at 975’044 tonnes, up 8,9 percent. Following the robust growth of 8,5 percent in the second quarter of the current fiscal year, sales volume growth accelerated to 11,3 percent in the third quarter. Key volume growth drivers in the first nine months of the current fiscal year were above-average growth rates in emerging markets, the ongoing implementation of outsourcing contracts and market share gains. All regions contributed to the overall strong volume growth. The most significant volume increases were noted in Region Asia-Pacific (plus 20,9 percent) and Region Americas (plus 16,8 percent). In terms of product groups, Gourmet + Specialties Products recorded an excellent volume growth of 20,3 percent. Barry Callebaut´s growth was in sharp contrast to the flat development of the global chocolate market for the period from September 2009 to April 2010 (Source: Nielsen). In the first nine months of fiscal year 2009/2010, sales revenue in local currencies increased by 11,7 percent. In Swiss Francs, the company´s reporting currency, sales revenue rose 7,9 percent and came in at 3’926,4 million CHF.

Outlook

Juergen Steinemann, CEO of Barry Callebaut: «We are very proud of our significant sales volume growth in the first nine months of the current fiscal year. In the third quarter we managed to further accelerate our pace of growth. We have benefited from our targeted expansion to emerging chocolate markets, such as Eastern Europe, China, Mexico and Brazil, where we inaugurated our first chocolate factory in South America in May 2010. Starting from our solid foundation in Western Europe and North America, we are now in an even better position to tap the growth potential of the most dynamic chocolate markets in the world. In addition, we are particularly pleased with the excellent development of our high-margin Gourmet + Specialties Products business. We still expect an unfavourable forward combined cocoa ratio as well as negative currency translation effects in the coming months. However, based on our focused growth strategy and supported by the ongoing outsourcing trend, we are confident that we will continue to significantly outperform the global chocolate market and be able to achieve our three-year financial targets».

Info: Barry Callebaut reports sales for the first nine months of fiscal year 2009/2010 (complete press release).