Arytza, the agri-business group formed following the IAWS takeover of Swiss food business, Hiestand, said today that sales for the nine months to the end of April 2010 were down 9 per cent to €2.2 billion.
The firm also announced two new acquisitions this morning which consist of the purchase of food group Fresh Start Bakeries for $900 million and the North American pizza supplier Great Kitchens for $180 million.
Fresh Start operates 29 specialist production facilities across the US, Canada, Germany, Poland, Sweden, Spain, Brazil, Australia and New Zealand and has three joint ventures located in North America, Chile and Guatemala.
Great Kitchens is one of the leading pizza manufacturers in North America serving regional and national grocery chains and retail stores with premium quality pizzas and sandwiches.
The combined revenue of the two businesses is €1.03 billion, with associated Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) of €133 million.
In an interim trading update the group said its European food division had continued to experience deterioration in revenues during its third quarter with like-for-like revenues declining by 4.6 per cent against a like-for-like revenue fall of 8.6 per cent for the nine month period to the end of April.
The company raised its outlook for the full-year, saying it expects underlying earnings per share to rise due to the new acquisitions.
