Farmlands defends card fee hike
A Farmlands shareholder is questioning the rural trader’s decision to more than double its annual card fee.
In its annual report released late last week chairman Lachie Johnstone and chief executive Peter Reidie blame the loss on the tough year in farming.
“The highs and lows confronting the sector are well documented and Farmlands has not been immune to them, posting a $9 million loss for the year ended 30 June 2016,” they say.
So bad was the year that, as earlier reported, no bonus rebate will be paid to shareholders “because the conditions we were experiencing would not allow it”.
Johnstone says this announcement foreshadowed a full year loss, but he claims things are now improving.
“Since the end of the financial year our results suggest we are on track for a stronger 2017.”
Reidie says: “the decline in sales, required adjustment to our cost base and right sizing our organisation, after many years of growth,” became an urgent focus during the year.
The co-op says its nutrition and retail businesses were hardest hard hit.
“Decreased foot traffic in our dairy-oriented stores had a ripple effect, and some of our livestock and real estate business units were down on previous years.”
But he says there were “positive contributions” from other parts of the business, in particular grain and seed.
