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Chief executive Miles Hurrell says he's pleased by the result.
Fonterra is reporting a first quarter gross profit of $270 million, up $72m on the same period last year.
Chief executive Miles Hurrell says he is pleased with the progress the co-op has made in the first quarter- from August to October 2020. The co-op has continued to make progress on implementing its strategy.
“Despite ongoing market disruptions from COVID-19, we are continuing to build on the momentum achieved in the last financial year,” he says.
Sales volumes are in line with the same period last year, which was before the full impact of COVID-19.
“This reflects strong demand for dairy and careful management of our supply chain,’ says Hurrell.
“We’ve seen improvements right across our business, which has resulted in a 40% increase in our normalised earnings. There’s been a couple of exceptions to this – Europe, which has been impacted by higher costs, and Africa, which has been impacted by lower volumes as we have shifted product to meet strong demand across Asia.”
Fonterra’s Greater China Foodservice business has been the stand-out performer: demand for dairy in China continued to recover strongly from COVID-19.
The co-op expanded its foodservice business into another 13 cities in China, bringing the total number of cities it operates in to more than 360.
“And our teams are helping to drive demand by continuously releasing new innovative ways of using our products in local cuisine as they pursue the next big food trend in China,” says Hurrell.
Demand in the Southeast Asia (SEA) Consumer business has improved year-on-year, while the SEA Foodservice business has started to recover as COVID-19 restrictions eased in some markets.
OPINION: There is zero chance that someone who joined Fonterra as a lobbyist, then served as a general manager of Fonterra's nutrient management programme, and sat on the board of Export NZ, a division of lobbyist group Business New Zealand, doesn't understand that local butter (and milk and cheese) prices are set by the international commodity price.
Kiwis love their butter, and that's great because New Zealand produces some of the best butter in the world. But when the price of butter goes up, it's tough for some, particularly when many other grocery staples have also gone up and the heat goes on co-operative Fonterra, the country's main butter maker. Here the co-op explains why butter prices are so high right now.
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Kiwis love their butter, and that's great because New Zealand produces some of the best butter in the world. But when the price of butter goes up, it's tough for some, particularly when many other grocery staples have also gone up and the heat goes on co-operative Fonterra, the country's main butter maker. Here the co-op explains why butter prices are so high right now.
DairyNZ chair Tracy Brown has waded into the debate around soaring butter prices, pointing out that the demand for dairy overseas dictates the price to farmers and at the supermarket.
Farmers are welcoming new Government proposals to make farm health and safety rules more practical and grounded in real-world farming.
Missing fresh mozzarella cheese made at home in Bari, southern Italy, Massimo Lubisco and his wife Marina decided to bring a taste of home to New Zealand.
