Despite a difficult currency market, Irish multinational Fyffes finished a good first half year, according to the recently published half-year figures. The group’s turnover (including joint-ventures) rose by 14.7 per cent to 739.3 million euro. The adjusted EBITDA was 11.3 per cent higher at 44 million euro. This increase is partially thanks to the successful takeover of Highline, and the first three months after the takeover were also included in the report. In addition, the company profits from the first harvests of the melon plantations that were acquired near the end of 2015, were also taken into account.
The banana market was challenging during the first six months of 2016. The main cause is the stronger position of the American dollar against the euro and the British pound sterling. Fyffes managed to carry through several increases in price, but those were insufficient to erase the effects of the exchange rate. That is why the company continues looking for ways to raise its selling price. On the other hand, the market profited from the lower costs, especially fuel costs which were significantly lower. Finally, Fyffes’ supply of organic bananas has increased.
The results for pineapple were also affected by the strong dollar. However, the effect was smaller because the volume of pineapples traded on the British market is smaller than that of bananas. Additionally, prices were higher in a number of markets, and Fyffes profited from the lower fuel costs. Plantations performed well, with high returns and low production costs.
Due to the successful takeover of plantations in Guatemala, Fyffes’ volume of melons increased by more than 20 per cent. This product group performed well on the American market. However, costs were higher due to higher production and the larger volume.
In April, Fyffes took over Canadian mushroom cultivator Highline Produce. The company is performing in line with expectations. The Canadian subsidiary contributed 2.3 million euro to the EBITDA.