August 2, 2006

  

Nutreco's fish feed activities produce good first-half results

 

 

Dutch food group Nutreco has reported positive first-half results from its global fish feed and feed speciality operations.

 

While bird flu impacted upon the company's meat businesses in Spain and its international breeding activities, the Spanish compound feed business posted a good result. However, the results in the Benelux countries were down compared to last year.

 

First-half sales beat expectations to rise 4.7 percent to EUR 1.39 billion.

 

Nutreco CEO Wout Dekker said measures have been taken to strengthen the company's activities in Western Europe and to achieve cost reductions.

 

The sale of Nutreco's 75 percent stake interest in Marine Harvest helped the company achieve a book gain of EUR 379 million, Dekker said.

 

Nutreco is now concentrating on growing its core activities of animal feed and fish feed in Eastern Europe, North and South America and Asia, looking at both organic growth and growth through acquisitions, Dekker said.

 

Acquisitions and alliances have been made in Russia, China and India while others are still under consideration.

 

Dekker said the company expects one or two major acquisitions or a number of medium to small sized takeovers in combination with an extra payment of dividend and a focus on strategic growth.

 

Nutreco will hold an EGM Aug 31 to approve the proposal to pay a super dividend of EUR 9 a share.

 

Dekker said Nutreco would be playing an active part in the consolidation process taking place in the animal feed market of Western Europe. With the company's current market positions and the strength of its balance sheet, Nutreo is well set to realise its international growth ambitions, Dekker said.