BOPARAN HOLDINGS, the parent company of 2 Sisters Food Group, reported a £17.5m pre-tax loss in its latest financial results, compared with a £5.9m loss the year before.
The latest results, filed with Companies House, cover the 52 weeks to 27 July last year.
Turnover was also lower, at £2.7bn compared with £3.3bn the year earlier.
EBITDA was £4.5m, compared with £22.1m the year before.
Directors said that business disposals were behind the decrease in sales.
2 Sisters has a “Poultry-Plus” strategy; focusing on efficiency in its core poultry business and “realising value” from other assets.
Better outlook
Directors said performance in the second half of the financial year was “significantly better” than the first half, and the outlook for 2019/2020 was “much better”.
During its 2018/2019 financial year, the firm sold its red meat division and the Manton Wood sandwich manufacturer and closed its Five Star Fish business.
Boparan Holdings Key Performance Indicators
| 27 July 2019 | 28 July 2018 | |
| Turnover | £2,740.6m | £3,339.1m |
| Operating profit | £4.5m | £22.1m |
| EBITDA | £91.7m | £118.4m |
| EBITDA margin | 3.3% | 3.5% |
| Loss before taxation | (£17.5m) | (£5.9m) |
| Net debt | £631.4m | £601.8m |
| Net debt to EBITDA ratio | 6.89x | 5.08x |
And since the end of this latest financial year, the firm has sold the Christmas pudding producer Matthew Walker.
The company’s largest division, Protein, which includes poultry production, recorded a 19.6% decline in sales to £1.8bn, which was largely because of the sale of 2 Sisters’ Red Meat division, according to directors.
Poultry growth
But the firm said its core UK and EU poultry businesses both saw year-on-year growth.
“The transformation of the business continues and should help drive improved results in the next financial year,” the directors’ report says.
“However, there is further work to do to ensure this strategy delivers the improvements we require, and cost reduction and restructuring are likely to continue for the foreseeable future.”
